Just A Taste
by dangerousnightfires
Summary: Vamp/Demon/Modern AU. Gaara and his siblings live a comfortable life with Gaara's best friend; a Kyuubi Demon named Naruto, until Naruto takes in a vampire princess who is just as blood thirsty as Gaara is. Vamp GaaraXOC M for violence and sexual content
1. Chapter 1: Betrayal

**A/N: First chapter of a new fic. This is different than my other one as it's an Alternate Universe with vampires, demons, and the like. Ummm…not much else to say other than: I do NOT own Naruto or the Naruto characters only my own original ones and the plot are mine. So Read and Review and tell me what you think.**

Chapter 1: Betrayal

Moonlight streamed in past the heavy curtains as Hinata walked down the dimly lit corridor. It had been nearly 200 years since the first time she had walked past the old oak doors and the red painted walls on her way to meet with the leader of the clan hers served, their queen. She was followed by her cousin, Neji, then just as she was now. As she looked down the hall he walked to her side and remembered the first time they had ever set foot in this old place. Remembered the warnings they had received.

As such they both knew the repercussions of their plan being discovered, but they knew they needed to do this for their friend. A friendship that spanned almost two centuries had lead to this hour. The hour during which they were called by the queen to see through a task she would give them. A task they were sad to see handed to them.

Neji opened the door to the sitting room and allowed Hinata to pass through first. Two figures stood in the room in front of them reminding Neji very much of that day so long ago…

_December 28, 1808_

"_Father? W-Where are w-we?" she asked as she looked up at her father, Hyuga Hiashi, vampire lord of the Hyuga clan._

_He looked down at his young daughter, studying her as her cousin walked to her side silent as the grave, and decided to answer._

"_We are in the ancestral home of the Kamitsuyo clan, Hinata. I have been asked to bring you and Neji here so you can keep the little princesses company."_

"_There is no royalty for vampires." Neji whispered, forgetting that his uncle could hear him perfectly well._

"_Not in a literal sense but their clan is much older than ours and the others of the country. Tradition dictates that we refer to them as royalty." Hiashi stated as his nephew stared, shocked at first for being heard, then blankly as he absorbed the information, "Their clan is different than ours. Leadership passes solely through the female line. Do you understand why I am telling you this?"_

"_One of the p-princesses m-might be the clan head s-someday?" Hinata asked and her father nodded._

"_Yes, and because when we meet them you need to understand that while Ryouma Kenzo may be King, his wife holds the power and final say on everything. Kamitsuyo Akahana is the one you must never cross. Do you understand?"_

"_Yes, Hiashi-sama." Neji stated as Hinata nodded shyly and they entered a large sitting room._

_Hiashi bowed respectfully to the two figures that stood before them prompting his daughter and nephew to show respect as well. As the older vampires greeted each other, Neji looked up at the faces of the pair that stood before them. _

_So this was the pair that could even make Hyuga Hiashi bow? They didn't look that imposing but even Neji's young nose could smell the pure scent of power that emanated from them or more specifically the woman, Kamitsuyo Akahana. _

_The young Hyuga's first impression of her was that she was some kind of a dark haired porcelain goddess in red. She wasn't the tallest woman he had ever seen average in height really and that was the only thing he found average about her. Everything else about her was that kind of perfection you would expect from a vampire queen. Her form was slender but graceful, perfectly presented by the red gown she had selected to wear that night; in fact Neji would learn that the Queen always wore red no matter what. He found it rather difficult to believe that this woman was a vampire, a killer by nature, that she was a queen he could believe easily. Her entire bearing was that of a queen: proud, confident, graceful, and wise. She looked down at him when she noticed his inspection, eyes the color of the snow clouds that had blanketed the sky that day and a thick mess of softly curled jet black hair falling over her slender white shoulders to her waist. Her light grey eyes smiled down at him while her rose red lips curled up in a soft and pleasant smile as her mate and husband, Ryouma Kenzo, looked down at Hinata. _

_The king himself stood a good head above his wife and at first glance would have been named as the more powerful of the two. His very presence demanded respect and instilled a sense of menace almost. You knew by looking at him that to anger him spelled death and destruction upon you. His frame was almost lanky but could be better defined as a slim athletic build and even that demanded respect. Neji would come to understand that the scowl he had on that night was the natural way his face sat. Ryouma Kenzo rarely smiled or laughed and when he did it seemed out of place. There was a reason for that and that was his dark eyes. His eyes were something Neji couldn't quite define. They were cold, distant, the eyes of a killer, and yet there was strange warmth in them that, he would find later, no one other than his youngest daughter had ever been able to figure out. As his dark eyes looked out past the dark brown hair of his bangs, which usually fell into his pale face as the rest fell down just past his chin, the queen spoke._

"_Hiashi-sama, we are overjoyed that you have accepted our offer." She stated kindly as she smiled._

"_It is an honor to be asked such a favor, Akahana-heika." Hiashi stated as he bowed and another voice was heard._

"_The girls need company. Zukiyo is in need of…companions that accept her nature as well as theirs." The king stated suddenly, voice deep and even more commanding than his physical appearance, "Yukiko needs to be shown that there are others like us, other children like her and her sister. Her sister is already suffering for it and is asking questions I cannot answer. If I could I'd-"_

"_Kenzo!" Akahana growled, eyes darkening in an anger until Kenzo bowed ever so slightly, "We've had that discussion."_

"_The girls are coming." The Hyuga lord stated as they heard the sound of running feet and the door opened._

_Two girls ran in, one laughing with her short curled hair bouncing, the other silent and solemn her straight hair flying, as they stood in front of their parents._

"_Girls, this is Lord Hyuga Hiashi and his daughter Hinata and his nephew Neji. They will be living with us for a while now." Akahana stated, eyes smiling again, to the girls and they dropped a curtsy simultaneously, "Hinata, Neji this is Zukiyo and Yukiko, our daughters."_

The two Hyuga vampires walked towards the queen as she stood waiting for them and bowed respectfully.

"Yukiko-heika." The male vampire greeted as he and his cousin bowed in front of one of the figures while the other stood to the side, hands bound behind her back by handcuffs, reinforced ones to be sure.

"Neji, you know you don't need to address me that way. You _are_ only two of my oldest friends." His old friend stated, her dark grey eyes smiling down at him masking the deep and consuming coldness in them as her long straight dark brown hair stirred in the night breeze coming through the window, "I have need of you."

"We have heard and so we came, Yukiko." The female vampire stated, forcing herself to not stutter as she did so often when nervous, and she stood up, "It is a hard habit to break when we've been addressing you as Yukiko-heika all night."

"Tradition must be upheld." The woman, Yukiko, stated and they heard a snort come from the figure to the side, "Don't start."

"We will escort her to there to carry out her sentence." Neji stated and his cousin looked at the other figure and sadly shook her head, "I know the prison well. It's housed some of the worst and no one has ever escaped. It's impossible."

"Some of the worst? You mean murderers and homicidal maniacs? I don't think they've ever dealt with something quite like me before. Are you sure they can handle what I am?" the other person asked, her light grey eyes smiling amusedly past dark brown hair that fell in soft ringlets down her back, "I know what I am so there's no need to tiptoe around it."

"Hold your tongue, Zukiyo." Yukiko snapped and the young woman mock bowed.

"Forgive me my sister. I did not mean to step beyond my place."

"Here I am sending you to the worst place possible for what you've done and still you stand there mocking me?" Yukiko growled, eyes darkening to the near black of her father and fangs growing until she caught herself and forced the animal inside her to retreat her sister smirked.

"Of course I mock you…_Heika_. You lie to everyone and yourself about what you are. You curse me for embracing my bloodlust when you know that you feel it too…pounding and throbbing deep in your soul begging for the pure and sweet bliss of release that comes when you kill. You can send me away but you can never escape the animal inside of you. Mother knew what she was and she didn't hide it and neither did Papa…sometimes I think the wrong one of us was born first." The Queen's younger twin stated and laughed, "You're lucky I want nothing to do with the throne otherwise I'd be telling you to be worried about me escaping."

Yukiko stared at her twin unable to find an answer as the woman laughed. Her laugh disturbed the young queen. It was dark, twisted, feral…and just like hers. The queen couldn't help herself and stared at her twin studying her and saw things she didn't before.

Zukiyo had always taken after their mother more in build but was an ever so slightly more filled out version. She had neither their father's nor mother's face, more a combination of the two that seemed to give the princess more of a gypsy's face than an aristocrat's. Yukiko found that she could describe her sister's face no other way; from her soft red lips to her ears it was her face and no one else's. While she and her twin did share much of the same features, Yukiko found that, while the only real difference was that her nose was ever so slightly larger, Zukiyo and she looked completely different. It pleased the young queen and angered her all at the same time.

Zukiyo was a near perfect combination of their father and mother. She had their father's complexion not the pure porcelain of their mother. She was slightly taller than their mother had been but she was by no means above average in height. She had their father's hair just as Yukiko did, but with their mother's curl to it, falling down in soft ringlets past her shoulders to her mid back. She stood there with their mother's eyes smiling back at the young queen as a smile splayed across her lips and Yukiko realized that she was right.

Zukiyo was right, she was afraid of that side of herself, afraid of that animal inside her, and it frightened her that when she thought of what Zukiyo did she felt a rush course through her body. It frightened Yukiko that when she thought of the acts of bloodshed that her sister committed it aroused her in a way that her own king could never hope to do. She looked into her sisters smiling eyes as they stared back knowingly while she grinned and walked towards her slowly. The other two assumed a defensive stance not knowing what she would do, knowing that Zukiyo could kill without warning and make everything run red if she so chose…

_March 15, 1861_

_The moon cast an eerie light upon the scene as Hinata walked down it, making sure to keep her skirts off the blood washed ground. It had been over fifty years since her father had brought her and Neji to live with the Kamitsuyo clan so it didn't surprise her to see the streets run red as she heard the screams in the distance. Neji walked beside her as usual: Cool, calm, and collected with the air of a nobleman. Up ahead they saw the two princesses, once again, fighting after Yukiko dropped the body of the man she had fed from and her sister clapped joyously after licking the blood from her own kill off her fingers._

"_Finally you have fed! How do you feel now? Hopefully it has diminished that foul mood of yours." Zukiyo stated, eyes smiling, always smiling as her mothers did._

"_I feel like a monster…" Yukiko stated and slapped her sister hard enough to draw blood, "You made me do this! I never wanted to do this and yet you dragged me out here, you monster!"_

"_You needed to feed, Yukiko! We are not monsters! We kill because we must! We are vampires: Nocturnal predators that feed off of the blood of others. Key words being: Predators and blood. It is in our nature to hunt and want to hunt."_

"_You go farther than that…you…_enjoy_ this. How can you like this?"_

"_We're predators and we need to feed so why not make it fun? Why not enjoy it? I always do…it makes them so much tastier when they fight back. Much more filling that way and it amuses me." Zukiyo answered, her long dark brown curls pulled up out of her face, "I know you agree with me, sister. I can see you fighting it in your eyes. I know…I will always know."_

"I know how it excites you, Yukiko. I know how it makes your blood hot when you think of how I killed that man…you loved how I tore his heart out and opened his throat. It makes you feel so…high when you remember how his blood ran down my fingers to the floor smelling oh so sweet and delicious. I know it does. I also know how it arouses you when you think of how I took his lover and-" her head cracked around to the side as her sister slapped her and she smiled as she tasted blood and licked her lips, "You know I'm right, sister…otherwise you would have never slapped me."

"Get out of my sight." Yukiko growled and walked away, "You are stripped of your title and the name Kamitsuyo."

"Impossible. That is against the clan's traditions." Zukiyo stated warily, "Mother-"

"I AM NOT MOTHER!" Yukiko shouted angrily and pointed at her, "You had best remember that, _little sister_. I am not Mother. Mother is _dead_ and so is Father because of you!"

"I AM NOT THE ONE THAT MURDERED THEM!" Zukiyo snarled back, baring her own fangs.

"You may not have struck the killing blow, sister…but you are still to blame for it. Now get out of my sight." The queen commanded and turned away.

"May your reign be bloody." The younger twin stated seriously and walked towards Neji and Hinata.

"May you rot in hell, _Kijo_." Yukiko stated as an insult and her twin faked injury.

"I didn't mean that as an insult my dearest sister. I only want you to be happy." She replied mockingly.

"I'll be happy when you get out of my sight. Neji, Hinata take her now."

They nodded and lead their queen's sister away into a plain ordinary car they had rented for the occasion and drove off. Zukiyo looked out at the world passing by her and growled. Humans…bah. They were all so ignorant. Going about their daily lives in ignorant bliss of what awaited them in the dark alleys of the Undercity. She turned her head to look at the two vampires and they looked at her. Something about the way they looked at her didn't seem to fit with the situation.

Hinata knew Zukiyo suspected something by the light in her eyes but the young Hyuga didn't say anything. Instead she studied her old friend.

Zukiyo, as always, tended to look like some kind of a dark vampire princess even when she was sitting handcuffed in the back of a car wearing only a simple black long sleeved shirt, black scarf, and pants. This was in itself odd. She rarely ever wore solid black.

Zukiyo shared her mother's affinity for red in a sense but no where near as drastic preferring instead to combine it with black, grey, or brown, but never white. Zukiyo never wore white, ever, but she did always wear a choker, scarf, or necklace, anything to hide her slender pale neck from the world when out. She had been in the practice of doing so for nearly 110 years and Hinata hated remembering why. However the reason why Zukiyo hid that one piece of her body from the world was the reason for what would happen tonight.

"T-Turn h-here, Nii-san." Hinata stated and her cousin nodded as he drove the car, "We're not s-sending you to t-that prison, Zu. Yukiko is losing her mind."

"I agree." Zukiyo stated, "That still doesn't explain why you are risking death to help me though. So why?"

"Because you are our friend and we know you." Neji stated as he drove the car, pale eyes never leaving the road, "You love the hunt, the kill, and the blood, but you choose your victims for a reason most of the time. You don't just randomly kill, you choose those who-"

"Don't you dare." The woman growled.

"As y-you wish, Zukiyo-hime." Hinata stated as they stopped at a parking lot and helped Zukiyo out.

Neji released her from the handcuffs and opened the trunk of the car, pulling out a couple of bags and suitcases before walking over to another car. Zukiyo rubbed her wrists and watched curiously as he did and had to ask.

"Where are you taking me anyway?"

"To someplace far away where you can hide from the hunters. It's the estate of an old friend of ours. You will be safe there." The male stated as he opened the back of the new car and dropped the bags in by others and Hinata nodded her head.

"I-It's w-where we go o-off to every once i-in a w-while." She stated and took a deep breath, trying to calm her self and stop her stuttering, "You will be safe t-there."

"How will you explain my disappearance to my sister? And what is the real reason you are doing this?"

"We are not going to explain it. We are going with you." Neji stated as he held the car door open for the princess as she got in and he and his cousin got in as well, "Originally we were planning to tell her you overpowered us, but there is no way she'd believe that besides…we believe Yukiko was planning to kill you. We've known you both for years and we know how her mind works. Your sister will kill you if she finds you because of her fear for her own bloodlust. Especially after what your mother told me when you both hit 100."

_January 1__st__, 1900 New Years Day_

"_Akahana-heika, you can't be serious." Neji stated to the queen as she sat at the table looking at him, her smiling grey eyes overcast with sadness._

"_No, Neji. Yukiko blames her sister for the blood lust she has. She has for almost 40 years. That is why she struck out at her last night." Akahana stated as she stared out the window into the moonlit garden._

"_Why can't you stop her doing that, Heika? It upsets Hinata to see Zukiyo allow her sister to harm her. I know she does it sometimes just to provoke Yukiko's instinct, but last night Zukiyo did _nothing_ to provoke her sister. Please stop this." He pleaded and she smiled sadly at him._

"_I cannot."_

"_Why not?" Neji asked, his temper flaring, "You are the leader of this clan, surely you can do _something_!"_

"_Watch your tongue, boy." She spat, eyes darkening into the grey of a thunderhead._

"_Forgive me, Heika, I am only concerned for the welfare of my friends and family." He stated shrinking down obediently and she growled._

"_Don't you think I would do something if I _could_, boy? I can't do anything to Yukiko. I cannot." Akahana growled, "She is stronger than me, her father, and her sister. _That_ is why Zukiyo allows it to happen, because she can't stop it. Yukiko is the heir apparent and I cannot touch her and neither can Zukiyo even if she had the strength."_

"Nii-san is right. Yukiko has b-blamed you for it for a-almost 150 years but now she has started to think that if s-she gets r-rid of you her bloodlust will be easier to control."

"We're going to the airport next." Neji stated and Zukiyo shuddered, she hated flying, "I know you hate airplanes, Zu, but it's the only way. Going by car would take too long."

"I don't mind taking a little longer." Zukiyo squeaked, the thought of flying just not settling well with her.

"Well, we could always go by _boat_..." He suggested, slightly teasing her for her fears.

"Urgh…I hate you." She growled and he let out a short laugh and nodded having won.

She had adapted to everything else that the human race saw fit to throw at her, but she just couldn't take planes and those cruise liner ships. Giant hulking mounds of metal were not meant to float or fly.

"T-There's another r-reason we want to g-get there as fast as possible." Hinata stated, "You haven't fed in days."

"Hn." Zukiyo grunted, she hadn't fed in much longer than that.

"If we drove you still wouldn't be able to feed." Neji stated as he turned onto the highway towards the airport, "Doing so would only leave a trail that Yukiko could follow. Catching the next flight out is the quickest and safest solution."

"Tell me about my new home then." Zukiyo sighed in defeat.

For much of the long car ride to the airport they told her of her new home. An old friend of theirs, a demon, owned the place. It was a large and sprawling estate located far to the south east nestled in a mountain range above a large city.

"The house itself is huge. You can easily get lost in it and I swear that sometimes the rooms move and change." Neji stated and his cousin nodded.

"The gardens are b-beautiful and I know you will l-love them…but p-please don't get lost in the hedge maze. I got lost once and it took me t-three days to get out, thankfully it has a kind of dome over it to protect from the sun. I w-wandered in circles f-for days. I'm not k-kidding. It's not your n-normal hedge maze, Zukiyo, i-it forces you to finish it. Overall though you will love it," Hinata stated as she calmed down more until she saw the look in her friend's eyes, "W-We are o-only d-doing this for your o-own good, Zuzu."

"Your friend does know I'm coming right?" she found herself asking at one point a little while later, "How exactly did you get them to agree to this anyway?"

"Hinata asked him." Neji stated scowling slightly as Hinata blushed faintly then deeper as her cousin continued, "He will do anything she asks. He's after something more, I know he is, and if I catch him sneaking around her chambers again I swear I'll rip his heart out myself!"

"You will do no such thing!" Hinata snapped, baring her fangs at her cousin, "Naruto is a good man despite his demonic nature. Strong, fierce, trustworthy, and loyal. You know you can't kill him anyway. You've tried and lost."

"It is not proper! Your father would have a fit if he knew about your…infatuation with Naruto!" Neji snapped back, the two forgetting about Zukiyo momentarily.

"I-I don't c-care what Father t-thinks! He's been grooming Hanabi as clan head for years anyway." She said and Neji looked at her shocked at how she could have known, "I've known for a while. What does Father care if I choose a demon?"

"Do as you please, Hinata-sama. I will not stop you." Her cousin stated, giving in, and answered Zukiyo's other question, "Yes, he knows you are coming. He knows who you are, what you are, and why you are coming. That's about it. He's known since before the 'trail'. Hinata is right in one thing. He is loyal and will let no harm come to you. Even though he barely knows you now he will fight and die if need be to protect you. Just watch his temper. He'll protect you but if you piss him off he'll probably try to kill you, and let me tell you…he hits _hard_."

Zukiyo zoned out as they neared the airport and thought about all of this. Thought about what they had said about her sister. It astonished her really. That she didn't see it before…see it sooner. She growled at the thought of her own sister trying to betray her. She realized that she _couldn't_ have seen it, because…she didn't _want_ to.

Yukiko was her sister. She found it hard to call her twin since they never shared that kind of bond, but still…she was _family_. It went against what few morals she had to even think about killing her sister. Yes, they fought and yes they hurt each other, but that wasn't planning to kill. Sure she'd kill anything else that moved if it even dared to think about betraying her like this but this was her sister and her queen. Zukiyo was lost in these thoughts the entire trip until Hinata nudged her and announced they had arrived at the airport. She scowled and growled at the plane that passed overhead as Neji helped her out of the car.

"Let's get this over with." She grumbled and went to take a bag but was stopped by Neji, "Neji, for the last time: I can carry my own bags!"

"Y-you can't c-carry them a-all." Hinata stated and gestured with her hand quickly to the throngs of humans passing by them and Neji nodded and they walked into the terminal.

"Passports and Tickets?" the old woman asked and Neji pulled three brand new passports, tickets sticking out of them, out of his jacket then handed them to her to look over, "Enjoy your flight, Mr. Yamamoto, Mrs. Yamamoto, Ms. Yamamoto, and enjoy your stay."

As they walked to their seats Zukiyo looked at Neji with a mild interest.

"Mrs. Yamamoto?" she asked and he nodded.

"Yes, _dear_." He responded, emphasizing the need to play along, "I know you haven't gotten used to hearing it yet but by the time we get back from dropping of my sister it should sink in a little more. Then we can enjoy our honeymoon. Here, I know how much you like the window seat."

He sat her down by the window as she smiled at him, playing along, and whispered in his ear.

"I'm going to kill you when we land." She stated as Hinata sat down on the other side of Neji who was grinning.

"I know. I love you too, dear." He stated and a phone went off, "That's mine."

He answered it as a passing stewardess glared at him. Zukiyo sat looking at him as he dug in his pockets for it. He pulled out the phone as Hinata turned red from all the attention they weren't supposed to be drawing to themselves right then. He answered it.

"We're about to take off. See you in a bit. Bye." He said, hung up, and turned it off, "Sorry about that, miss. My mother is a bit of a worrier."

The stewardess nodded and moved on. Soon Zukiyo found herself gripping the arm rest and then Neji's hand when he offered it to her as the plane took off. Neji regretted it immediately as she gripped it with such force that it would have broken the bones if he was human. She faced ahead, her eyes shut tight until the plane evened out and only then did she let go of Neji's hand. As the stewardess came around offering food Hinata flagged her down.

"Can I get you anything?" she asked them and Zukiyo nodded.

"Anything with vodka in it. I need to steady my nerves. I don't like flying." She squeaked as the plan hit some turbulence and the stewardess nodded.

"You know it's not really going to help that much." Neji whispered for only their ears.

"I know, but haven't you ever heard of the placebo effect?" she asked and the stewardess returned with something for her, "Bless you."

Some hours later Hinata looked over to see Zukiyo was fast asleep with her head on Neji's shoulder. The two cousins had always been much closer to Zukiyo than Yukiko. As close as they were to the twins they often found it hard to remember that they were indeed twins. They were so different. One had to stare intently at the two side by side to even realize that they looked almost identical while at the same time not. Yukiko's hair was straight but that was not where the differences stopped. Zukiyo always had the air of a predator about her while Yukiko…Yukiko had the air of one losing her mind. Everything about the queen these days gave off some kind of hidden dementia. From the way her darker eyes shone in the light to the way her lips curled in an attempt to smile. Anyone that got close enough would sense that something was out of place with her. Hinata reflected on this as Neji sat reading some magazine until he caught her eyes. They were worried he could see.

"She's fine." He stated, "I'll wake her if anything starts to happen."

Hinata nodded as Zukiyo stirred in her sleep…

"_Two is one and one is two. Blood runs thick as moonbeams do…" the voice whispered in her ear before fading away still muttering indiscernible words._

"_Mother?" she called out to the whispering darkness, "Mother is that you?"_

"_For if she wakes the ground will shake...and all of you…"the voice whispered in front of her as she saw her mother's eyes appear in front of her then something rushed at her claws dripping blood, "Shall DIE!"_

Zukiyo woke with a start as the plane jerked a little and looked around as if trying to remember where she was. When she did she meekly glanced out of the small window into the black world below and Neji squeezed her hand reassuringly.

"Everything is fine. What were you dreaming about? You were muttering something." Neji asked and Zukiyo shook her head.

"Let's not discuss that here." She murmured as she stared out into the black and he nodded.

"We're there." Hinata stated as she looked out a window a few rows ahead, "The city l-lights should b-be coming into v-view."

She could see the lights start spreading out below her as the captain prepared them for landing. She felt the panic run through her as the plane dipped down to land. Once again she nearly broke Neji's hand, squeezing it until they landed. As they walked towards the baggage claim Neji's phone rang again.

"We are at the baggage claim." Neji answered and Zukiyo heard a voice on the other end, a male voice.

"I rented you a car. It should be waiting for you outside the airport."

"And why are you not here to meet us?" Neji asked, "That's not being a very good host."

"I haven't exactly told _everyone_ she's coming. He just got back from his trip." The voice stated and Zukiyo could almost hear the innocent grin on his face.

"Naruto you idiot! Of all the people not to tell…you don't tell _him_?" Neji yelled into the phone and Zukiyo raised an eyebrow and listened as she heard the voice on the phone.

"He wasn't here! I gotta go tell him now. HEY! We're gonna have comp-" the phone beeped as the call ended and Zukiyo eyed Neji questioningly for a moment.

"What was that all about?" she asked and Neji shook his head.

"Nothing. Don't worry about it. We have to get going so we get there before the sun rises." He stated and she nodded, she'd find out soon enough anyway.

"_Of all tyrannies a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive." ~ C.S. Lewis_

_I hate the idea of causes, and if I had to choose between betraying my country and betraying my friend, I hope I should have the guts to betray my country. ~ E.M. Forster_

**A/N: There you go the first chapter of the new fic! Tell me what you think and thank you to all those that helped me! You know who you are.**


	2. Chapter 2: Hunger

**A/N: Yeah, the next chapter already. I woke up and I'd post the next chapter for you. I do NOT own Naruto or the Naruto characters but the idea and other characters are mine.**

Chapter 2: Hunger

Zukiyo stared out the window of the car as they drove along the busy road to their new home, staring ahead at the mountain sides before them. The city alongside them had been practically built into the side of the range and sprawled out below it for miles. It wasn't the largest city she had ever seen, no where near it, but it was large enough for her to call it a metropolis of some kind or another. She wasn't sure where she was actually. Zukiyo had been all over the world and back again but she still had no idea where she was; and she actually liked it that way. If _she_ had no idea then Yukiko would be even more clueless and in the dark about it. Once again Zukiyo growled at the thought of all the wrong Yukiko had done her.

Zukiyo realized that, in a way, her sister had always been mad, always been a little…wrong in a way. How else could she have done all that she did? The princess sighed and adjusted the scarf around her neck out of habit then returned to staring out the window. A few minutes later she heard Neji curse as the radio reported something.

"Shit. There's an accident up ahead. The road to the estate is after it." He looked at the clock in the car and cursed again, "We don't have the time to wait in traffic."

"We can take the old road." Hinata stated without stuttering, she had long since calmed down.

He nodded and a few minutes later turned off the road onto an old dirt track.

"Thank God this thing can switch into manual!" Neji growled as he switched it over and shifted the gears while they bounced around.

"He couldn't have rented a car with better shocks?" Zukiyo asked crankily, she was starting to get very hungry.

Neji growled as he gripped the steering wheel and eventually the bumps smoothed over a good bit. Hinata sighed and laughed briefly which caused the others to laugh as well. They didn't know what for, they just did. It was a frequent thing with the three childhood friends. It would always confuse the king and queen when the three of them would randomly burst out laughing over something. It was always just the three of them that would do it. Zukiyo's twin never really joined in on it or just didn't get it.

Zukiyo sighed as she returned to staring out the window, watching the tunnel of trees they drove through turn into the sheer walls of the mountain. She soon began to notice the stars slowly fading out signaling the approach of dawn and Neji nodded as he did too.

"We'll be fine. We're almost there, Zuzu." He stated smiling at her and she relaxed nodding.

Not too long after they entered a long dark tunnel and Zukiyo stared ahead waiting for it to end. When it did it let out into what looked to be a small valley hidden deep in the mountains. Up ahead she saw the road they were on lead up to a large house that seemed to be made out of the same stone of the surrounding rock walls.

"Our dear friend loved these mountains so he built his home from them!" Hinata shouted as they passed under waterfall that ran off the side of the mountain before they drove up to an old gate.

Neji leaned out of the window of the car and punched a set of numbers into a keypad off to the side. They drove through as the gate opened and shut behind them. Neji parked the car off to the side as Zukiyo noticed a figure talking to another before turning and walking towards them.

As she got out of the car and stretched she noticed that the figure was what looked to be a young man. He was wearing a partially buttoned orange dress shirt halfway tucked into a pair of black jeans looking as if he just didn't have the patience to finish dressing himself. She studied him as he neared. He was taller than she was, most men were, and had a spiky mess of blonde hair that fell into his eyes. As he got even closer she noticed wide black whisker marks on his cheeks, a fox-like grin, and deep blue eyes. Her own light grey ones scanned him up and down as she appraised him and decided that while he was handsome enough he wasn't really her type, besides, Hinata had a thing for him. He stopped about seven or so feet in front of them and grinned, baring a mildly elongated set of canines. As he did so Zukiyo noticed a marking of some kind on his stomach and recognized it and the smell of his blood.

"Kyuubi Demon." She stated flatly and his eyes locked on hers before he looked her up and down grinning in a way that threw her off a bit.

She was used to this kind of inspection because of what she was. Being a female pureblood vampire princess usually caused people to stare at her. They would grin but not like _that_…like he knew what she was with a simple glance and had plans for her.

"Uzumaki Naruto, _the_ Kyuubi Demon and your most humble host." He stated bowing respectfully and she smirked at him no wonder he knew what she was, "Hina-chan, Neji I set her up with rooms on the north east side of the east wing."

Neji scowled at that as Hinata raised her eyebrow at the demon. This apparently meant something important. As for what, Zukiyo hadn't the slightest idea.

"You didn't." Neji stated growling until Naruto's eyes glowed red-orange and Neji backed down, something Zukiyo didn't see often.

"I did." The blonde demon stated, canines even more pronounced as his eyes remained a deep reddish orange, "It's the only wing in the house that contained an empty set of rooms fitted with tinted windows so stop complaining. I suggest you get your things inside before the sun rises. I'd hate to see Hina-chan's beloved cousin turn into a potato chip. I just might eat you then."

"Naruto!" Hinata scolded and the demon's eyes went back to blue as he pointed at Neji.

"He started it!"

"You know better." She continued and walked up to him and poked his chest.

Zukiyo watched as the blonde smirked softly at her friend as Neji grumbled about something improper until Hinata glared at him. This only made Naruto chuckle as his smirk twisted a little making Hinata blush and walk away, picking up a bag as she followed her cousin inside. When the Kyuubi Demon turned back to his newest guest he grinned at her again. He could tell it threw her off as it did most people. He loved that no one could ever tell what he'd do next. It made things more interesting.

She waited as she watched him until he nodded his head towards the house and she followed him. Naruto led her up to the house and she followed taking as much of it in as she could. The sheer size of it stunned her into a silent awe as she looked at it. It was only about four or five stories tall but it continued on deep into the valley until she couldn't see it anymore. The stonework was spectacular as was the architecture; Victorian with an Asian twist to it that she found worked. When they stepped inside the two large doors to the house she was welcomed by a brightly lit foyer and felt the enormity of the house all at once. It was almost oppressive but at the same time it felt comfortable.

"Yeah, it's amazing what a few rugs, tables, and lights can do to a place." Her host stated suddenly as he led her up the stairs, a slight bounce in his step, "This place is huge but you've seen that already so I'm sure I don't have to tell you that it's easy to get lost in here."

"I can see that. You could have a hundred guests in here and I'm sure you could go weeks without seeing any of them."

"Yes and no. Only a few rooms are meant to be bedrooms. I'm not really sure what all the other rooms are. After awhile I just told the contractors to be creative. You are right that this house could swallow a hundred people though." He said laughing then continued, "However, there are only three other guests besides you, Neji, and Hinata here right now. Well I wouldn't call them guests, they pretty much live here now and have been for the past…century or so. Anyway, some of the rooms _do_ move."

"Neji thought they did." Zukiyo stated and Naruto laughed again, he had pleasant laugh and she found that grin of his to be contagious as she realized she was grinning too.

"_I_ wasn't sure if they did or not for awhile but after a couple of decades here I went through that door over there one day," He stated pleasantly as he pointed to a black wooden door off to the right, "and it was a lounge then the next day I went back in and it was a small library. I was freaking out so bad when that happened I think I passed out 'cause all I really remember is waking up in my study with Neji looking at me telling me I was a brainless idiot. I have no idea what makes the rooms move they just do."

"You're house is alive. It happens in places like this occasionally with houses that become attached to their masters." She stated to him and he grinned at her again as he held open a door for her and she stepped in.

It was a sitting room he led her into. It was spacious yet still retained a cozy atmosphere that she found rather intoxicating. Light orange walls surrounded them as they walked across the bare wood floor to the chairs. She sat down in the one across from him and looked at him patiently as he leaned back in his chair grinning until he spoke.

"It is safe in here. I blocked the room so we can talk about anything you want…_anything_ at all." Naruto stated his eyes glinting at the implication slightly and she smirked at him.

"You have a beautiful house and I am a most gracious guest, Naruto, but you are an S-Class Pervert." She stated sweetly and he laughed merrily and nodded, deep blue eyes shining with his laughter.

"I always knew that Zukiyo-hime." He said and she looked at him flatly which slightly confused him.

"If you please just call me Zukiyo…or Zu if you want. I'd rather not have word of my…blood getting out." She said and he laughed again.

"I don't know if you've ever been told this but your blood has a rather strong scent to it. I'm a demon and I can smell it. I can just imagine what my friend is going to do once he gets hold of that scent." The blonde stated cryptically, laughing a bit more at her confusion, "As for your title, _Hime_…everyone will find out eventually. Secrets aren't kept long here."

"Secrets aren't kept long anywhere, Naruto-kun." She stated as she stretched back into the seat, "I just want some time to…explore and get to know more about everyone before I have them bowing down and calling me Hime or what have you. You won't have to of course. You are my host and I can already tell we're going to be great friends."

"Good, and I can understand your reasons although I highly doubt they'll be bowing down to you." He said and she looked at him as he leaned forward in his chair, elbows resting on his knees as a serious look entered his eyes, "I know why you were sent here, yes, but I need to know, Zu…why not just kill your sister? Why hide?"

"You don't know much about my clan do you?" she asked and he shook his head.

"No, only that it's one of the oldest of the vampire clans…so old that the members of it have more demon-like traits than the newer breeds who have more human-like ones. Neji is so tight-lipped about it he could put Fort Knox to shame. Hinata is too. What I have learned has come from two of my other friends and they only know what I've already told you and that you are a very dangerous clan. As for my third friend…I haven't asked. Now tell me why."

"Very well." She sighed, her hunger starting to eat at her a bit, "I cannot kill Yukiko for a number of reasons. The first being she is the clan's queen, therefore mine. It is a taboo…_unthinkable_ for a clan member to even think about raising a finger against the queen. The second is that even if I did manage to kill her I'd still be put to death for doing so. Third is that leadership of the clan passes through the female line only and that while she does have a mate and king if she dies, and I am miraculously not killed for killing her, the so-called throne would pass onto me. Then I'd be forced to marry her mate, since I don't have one of my own, and I _hate_ him. The last and most important reason is that I cannot."

"Why not?" he asked and she looked at him.

"She's stronger than I am and so is her mate. I…can't touch…them." Zukiyo stated as she felt her stomach knot and she groaned, gripping the arm of the chair tight as she heard a loud drumming in her ears.

"_**THUNK thunk… THUNK thunk… THUNK thunk…**__"_ it went but to her it called out a different tune whispering then steadily getting louder, _"__**Blood…feed…blood…hunger…feed now**__."_

Again and again she heard the whispers grew louder and louder, more frantic and pleading, edging her over the brink of sanity until a voice cut through the noise.

"Zukiyo? Are you ok?" it asked and she looked up at her host and the voices all agreed.

"_**HIM.**__"_

Naruto watched as her eyes began to slowly darken until black and saw her fangs fully emerge. She looked at him like he was her next meal, and to her…he _was_. He knew it too. He couldn't believe he didn't see it before. He cursed himself mentally for being stupid enough not to recognize that light in her eyes as hunger.

"Naruto-kun…why are you staring at me like that?" she asked as he backed up towards the door and she walked slowly towards him until he gripped the handle and turned it, opening out into the hallway, "Do I _scare_ you, Naru-kun?"

"Nope." He stated and backed down the hallway towards his friend's room, the only person that could probably stop her without killing her, "I just want you to meet someone."

"You smell so…_good_, Naru-kun." She sighed, her eyes rolling into the back of her head as she walked towards him and licked her lips, "So delicious, so delectable, and so _mine_."

"I don't think Hinata would agree with you." He stated, trying to distract her, "She tends to think of me as hers."

"Not when I'm done with you." Zukiyo sang out in a slightly insane manner as she looked him over and swallowed, "Mmm…I can't wait to sink my teeth into you. You are just too damn delicious."

"Well, thank you. I do try. Not too hard though, I don't need throngs of women throwing themselves at me. I have my eyes set on one in particular so there's no need." He stated and she giggled dementedly.

"When I'm done with you, you won't need those eyes anymore. I think I'll keep them." She giggled as she walked closer to him as he led her down a hallway.

"You would think I'd be more disturbed by that but then again I do know a lot of interesting people." The demon stated, thinking of a plan since he knew that, although he _could_ quite easily, killing her would only make Hinata mad at him, and he really didn't need that again.

"I don't think you've ever known someone quite like me, Naru-kun." She stated as she pushed him against the door of the room he was trying to reach and smiled.

That's when she _did_ scare him. He started pounding against the door as he recognized that smile. That cold, sadistic, _hungry_ smile. The last time he had seen that kind of smile he was nearly killed.

"Have you?" she said as she leaned up towards his neck slowly and breathed him in and moaned softly.

"Y-You'd be surprised at who I've met. For the love of God, open the damn door!" Naruto yelled and he saw his friend running down the hallway followed by Neji and Hinata as he felt the tips of Zukiyo's fangs against his neck, "HELP ME YOU FUCKING RACCOON FACED, MORONIC, BLOOD SUCKING BASTARD!"

Zukiyo felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist and pull her away from her dinner and she snarled as it escaped. She fought against her captor and discovered that no matter how hard she tried she couldn't get away. That meant it definitely wasn't Neji. He would have let go by then. He knew very well she didn't take very kindly to being restrained or touched. Knowing that it wasn't Neji made her angry. She was angry at the audacity of this person that dared interrupt her meal and restrain her in such a way and she was angry that whoever it was…was _strong_. Whoever was pulling her back was physically stronger than she was and that made her even angrier.

"Come on Kijo-chan…it won't do if you kill our friend." She heard a voice say as it whoever was behind her held her back and she turned her head to see a man and a woman standing in the door way looking at her.

The woman was blonde and blue eyed, neither colors as bright as Naruto's, but still blue eyed with blonde hair put up into four spiky pigtails. The man was taller than Naruto, spiky brown hair and a smirking face. He was the one who spoke and stepped to the side as Naruto reappeared and handed her a glass of that sweet red nectar she so desperately needed.

An arm let go of her waist as the other pulled her closer and reached out for the glass. Whoever was behind her was strong and very much a male, she could smell it. She was so hungry. She struggled harder as the hand took the glass from Naruto and brought it back towards her and a voice commanded her.

"Drink." it said and she realized that it came from the male holding her as it rumbled through his chest and she obeyed as the glass reached her lips, "Slow down."

She forced herself to slow down as her nails dug into the man's arm, breaking the skin no doubt as she felt something sticky start to run under her fingers. She moaned softly while coughing as she felt the sweet liquid run down her throat. It was cold, something she normally hated, but it was delicious…oh so delicious. She relaxed after draining the glass dry, the whispers in her ears finally stopping, and let out a soft contented sound. She released her grip on the man's arm and saw that she indeed did break skin. It healed as she looked down at it and the male behind her still did not let go. Her eyes met Naruto's and she looked down ashamed.

"Sorry. I get kinda cranky when I'm hungry." She stated and he grinned.

"Cranky? How about psychotic? It was my own damn fault for not sending you to feed, but I had no idea you'd try to fucking eat me." He laughed until he noticed she was ashamed of herself, "What's wrong? It's in your nature to want blood."

"Yes, but…" she sighed, "I disgust myself when I get like that…like..."

"Her sister." Hinata stated as she took the empty glass from the person behind her and handed him another one which he held in front of her.

"Drink." He said and Zukiyo scowled.

"You _could_ ask nicely." She stated and felt the male growl in annoyance.

"Fine. _Please_ drink."

"I can feed _myself_!" she growled as the hand raised the glass and she grabbed at it and drank it down, this one about room temperature, as the brown hair man chuckled.

"Well isn't she a feisty one?"

"_Who_ are _you_?" she asked and Naruto laughed.

"This is Temari and Kankuro." Naruto stated pointing to the woman and man beside him respectively then gestured to the one behind her, "He is-"

"Sabaku no Gaara." The man stated and she craned her neck upwards to look at him.

Blood red hair topped his head reaching just past his ears, a part in it on his forehead revealed what looked to be a tattoo of the kanji for love. She found that rather interesting but what really caught her attention were his eyes. They were a jade color she had never seen before and completely rimmed in black. He looked very much like a raccoon…or a panda but she didn't think he'd appreciate that comment. He had the face of a young man somewhere in his early twenties but she could tell just by the scent of him that he was much, _much_ older than that and a pureblood too. He was looking down at her with a cool interest hidden in those eyes. She licked the corner of her lips, cleaning the last drop of blood off of them and watched as his eyes flicked to them momentarily.

"Let me go. Now." She said in a slightly commanding tone and he glared at her as he let her go.

She backed up and looked him over as he crossed his arms over his chest. He was of a slightly slimmer build than Naruto and he seemed to like black and red in the same way that Naruto liked black and orange. The sleeves of his red shirt were rolled up to his elbows; a black leather vest was pulled on over it unbuttoned. The shirt was tucked into a pair of black pants, a black silver studded belt through the loops connected to a chain that lead to his pocket. She looked over at his siblings next. The woman seemed to be wearing pajamas, a big T shirt and loose baggy pants. Kankuro, as she now knew him to be, was wearing a purple T shirt and boxers. They were apparently getting ready for bed. He smirked as she looked him over, a fang coming into view until she glared at him before looking to Neji. He was giving off his usual stare but she could tell he was displeased with something. There was a slight crinkle in his brow that she knew meant something irked him.

"Have you found my rooms?" she asked him, ignoring the one called Gaara, and Neji nodded, "Good, now take me to bed. I'm going to sleep before I pass out on top of him."

She gestured towards Gaara as Neji held out a hand for her. She accepted it and wound her arm in his as he escorted her down the hall to her rooms. Before they turned the corner she stopped and looked back at the party she had just met and inclined her head respectfully.

"It is a pleasure to have met you all. Good night."

They watched her leave and Naruto soon noticed that Gaara was glaring at him growling. He was in trouble. That glare and growl always meant Naruto was in trouble with his vampire friend for something. The blonde sighed before looking at Gaara and asking the inevitable.

"What?"

"Don't give me that! You know perfectly well what! You put her in the rooms next to mine?" he asked then stopped as it clicked in his brain: her scent.

She was a vampire obviously. He knew that, Naruto told him, but what he didn't know was that she was a pureblood. Her scent marked her as one, a strong and available one. He pointed at Naruto as he glared more and growled.

"You…did this on purpose. Now I know why you agreed to let another pureblood vampire stay with us even though I warned you not to after Hinata and Neji. You agreed because she was a _female_ pureblooded vampire."

_No matter how good you are, sometimes you still need help. ~ Not sure who said it._

**A/N: There we are, Chapter 2...Chapter 3…Gaara's reaction *gasp*. I already have the next chapter done but I'm tweaking it before putting it up. Not much to say other than that so tell me what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3: Confrontation

**A/N: The next chapter for you. Not much to say other than that and the usual: Don't own Naruto, wish I did, but I do own the OC's and the plot line. Read, Review, and Enjoy!**

Chapter 3: Confrontation

"You always were a smart raccoon faced blood sucker." Naruto stated grinning.

"And you always were a stupid fox and you still are! Do you really think it's going to be that easy? Do you even realize how dangerous it is to have her here? She could have _killed_ you…I _should_ have let her." Gaara growled and Naruto growled at him, blue eyes turning a deep orange as his canines grew out as he lost his temper.

"Don't call me stupid, Gaara. Do it again and I swear I'll kick your ass all over this house till it's covered in your blood." Naruto growled again as Gaara did until Hinata spoke.

"Will you two stop it?" she hissed and glared at them, Naruto's eyes reverted back once again but Gaara glared at her before turning his glare back to Naruto.

"Naruto…" Gaara growled as he once again caught the scent of the newcomer, he was going to kill Naruto for this, "You conniving, immoral, vulpine bastard!"

With that he turned on his heel and stormed off into the house somewhere and his sister rounded on Naruto and Kankuro.

"I should've known you two were up to something!" she snarled, fangs showing as the anger was evident in her blue eyes, "Do you two have even the slightest notion of what you are doing?"

"Trying to get my little brother a woman so he stops breathing down our necks about everything?" Kankuro asked and Naruto grinned.

"He wasn't about to go out and find himself a woman himself." Naruto stated as he stared out her coolly, "You yourself stated that and the fact that female purebloods of your kind are rare…and powerful ones are rarer still."

"S-She is the perfect m-match for h-him." Hinata agreed and Temari stared at her shocked.

"You _knew_ about this? How can you do this?" Temari asked incredulously.

"I have my reasons." She stated before turning away and walking down her own hallway as Naruto smiled at her until Temari slapped him.

"You idiot!" she growled until his eyes flashed that dangerous color again, "She is from the Kamitsuyo Clan! You have no idea what that means! Even our _father_ wouldn't touch them!"

"Calm down, Temari." Kankuro stated rolling his eyes, "Gaara is stronger than Dad. Besides, he's a big boy now. He can handle it."

"You…thick skulled imbeciles! Gaara will either do one of two things! Kill her or use her!" she growled and Naruto stared at her.

"I don't think she's going to let him do that." Naruto stated, "If she was she probably would have drooled all over him like half the other fem vamps in this city do."

Neji came back stalking down the hallway towards Naruto. He wasn't particularly happy at the moment but he didn't say anything, he just glared and walked past the blonde to his own chambers. As he did they heard him muttering something that they couldn't quite make out. Temari growled before she turned around and slammed her door in their faces. Naruto rolled his eyes as Kankuro shook his head and they laughed.

"Well…that didn't go as expected." Kankuro stated after they finished, "You almost get eaten, Gaara storms off…well, _that _was expected, Temari is throwing a fit, Hinata is ok with this, and Neji is pissed."

Naruto snorted and looked at his friend.

"I expected this…well, not the almost being eaten part, but most of it. This will take some time…but it will happen." The demon laughed as he walked away towards his own rooms as Kankuro turned towards his…tomorrow was going to be interesting.

Zukiyo walked around her new rooms inspecting them. She wasn't exceptionally tired; she just wanted to get away from everyone. Too much was happening at once. She couldn't take meeting so many people at once. A strange thing considering she was in essence a princess and born to meet, greet, and host people. She let out an almost defeated laugh. So much had changed in the course of one day. Nine hours ago she was a convict and facing a life behind bars. Now she was the honored guest of a Kyuubi Demon and his vampire companions.

The fact that she would be living with a family of _pureblood_ vampires was just sinking in. She knew they would be vampires, Naruto had mentioned that, but he failed to mention that one of them was a male without a mate that was stronger than she was. All of _three_ of them failed to mention that. She would deal with it later.

She looked around at the sitting room she was in. It was much like Naruto's but smaller. The walls were painted a deep purple-blue, indigo if she had to put an actual name to it, while the thick drapes on the windows, and what looked to be a door to a balcony, were a silver color. Although she had always preferred red she liked it.

She looked down at the floor and saw that it was a light wood floor much like Naruto's with a few carpets here and there mostly more of the same silver color with some purple, off white, or blue tossed around on pillows and chairs. There was a small bookcase in the corner with a random assortment of books and a small table or two were against the walls. The middle of the room had a large black sofa sitting on a rather old looking blue Persian rug while it was situated in front of a TV. She smiled at that before she walked into her new bedroom and was once again greeted by high ceilings.

It had the same indigo color scheme right down to the bed, only in a slightly darker shade. The bed was a large classic four poster bed already made with fresh, clean, dark sheets, which was something she was ecstatic about since she had spent the past two weeks sleeping on a tiny cot in a holding cell and sitting up in seats. The floor was carpeted in a light silvery grey as a desk sat in the corner. The dresser and vanity mirror stood next to what she assumed was a closet and was proven right as she opened the door to see her bags sitting inside it. She saw another door next to the closet and opened it. As she guessed it was a bathroom and realized that Naruto really didn't do things small. Then again she was pretty sure he wasn't the one that came up with the color schemes otherwise everything would probably be orange, black, and blue. She didn't know how she knew that, it was mostly just a gut feeling. She breathed in deeply and sighed as she continued to look around. It was comfortable feeling and she liked it. She hadn't really felt this comfortable in a room since she was five and would run to her parent's room when she had a nightmare.

"Ok…" she started, talking to herself just to break the silence and looked at the clock on the wall, "I'm not really tired…I can take a shower. Yeah…a nice hot shower and then I'll go to sleep."

After her shower and sliding into some pajamas, consisting of a pair of blue PJ pants and an old T shirt she was sure was black when she got it, Zukiyo laid down in bed and closed her eyes as she felt the need to sleep draw her down into oblivion before she dreamed a familiar dream.

"_Mother! Mother!" she called as she ran down the path in the garden outside their ancestral home a few hours before dawn, "Mother!"_

"_I'm right here, sweetheart." Her mother's soothing voice called out from behind the young Zukiyo, "What is it my angel?"_

"_I couldn't sleep…and you weren't with Papa. Yuyu wouldn't let me in her bed and I can't find ShuShu." She said as her mother's smiling eyes softened as they filled with all the love she felt for her youngest daughter and picked her up, cradling her in her arms as she walked back inside._

"_Shh…everything is ok, Zuzu, Mother is here now. I'll stay with you until you fall asleep. Would you like that?" the queen asked, soft grey eyes smiling and shining at her little child who nodded and rest her head on her mother's slender shoulder._

"_I love you, Mother. I want to be with you always. We can right? Always be together?"_

"_We are immortal, my love, and I will love you until the end of time." She had replied and lay down in her daughter's bed with her, "Now sleep, my angel, Mother is here now and nothing will hurt you. Sleep…I will always be here to guide you and guard you, I promise."_

Liar. That was the one word that rung out in Zukiyo's mind as her dream faded into something else entirely…

_Her heels clicked on the marble floor as she walked down a hallway. She wasn't quite sure where she was. Nothing she looked at hinted at any clues. Door after door after door lined the walls on both sides._

"_Where am I?" she muttered to herself and something answered._

"_Here." A shrill whisper stated to her right, "Over here."_

"_Hello?"_

_She tried a door, the knob turned slowly as if it hadn't been used in sometime, and it opened into a room filled with light. She squinted as she stepped in, curiosity overpowering her and heard her heels click on something like glass. Zukiyo looked down into her own face. A mirror floor? What the hell was this? A fun house? Something giggled in the room and her head snapped up._

"_Hello?" the princess asked again not sensing anyone or smelling anyone but still needing to ask, "Is anyone there?"_

"_Come." It answered and she walked on into the room slowly as if afraid any step might shatter the floor, "Princess…come."_

"_Where? Where are you?" she asked as she walked faster, her hair whipping behind her as she soon began to ran through the room, how big was this thing anyway?_

"_Stop!" it hissed and she skidded to a halt and looked around, her cloud grey eyes catching the light until they shone silver in her frantic state, "Look."_

"_Where?"_

"_Look."_

"_Where?"_

"_Down." And she did and fell into that black pit that had haunted her dreams for the past 30 years and she heard a shuffling in the black._

"_One is two and two is one. This is something that cannot be undone." The voices whispered and she chased them as they muttered and floated around her, "If one dies…the other will cry…"_

"_Who are you?" she asked and saw her mother's eyes once again, "Mother?"_

"_The earth will break." It said and something with bloody claws ran at her, "And all of you shall DIE!"_

She woke up screaming, fangs bared as her eyes darted wildly, and pulled her knees up to her chest as she heard running. Someone began pounding on her door.

"Zukiyo? Zu? Zuzu? Zuzu, open the door!" it was Neji.

"I-It's not locked." She said so low she wasn't sure if he heard her until the door swung open.

Neji stalked through it and walked towards her as she reached out for him like she used to when they were young. His usually stoic eyes softened as he sat on the edge of her bed and pulled her to him.

"What happened?" he asked in a whisper as he tried to comfort the shaken princess.

"That damn dream again…" she whispered as someone stalked past her door and looked in briefly.

Its eyes caught the light and reflected it back as she felt Neji growl at it. She watched as its eyes narrowed in a scowl before walking off. She caught his scent: Gaara.

"His rooms are right next to yours." Neji stated and she nodded as she lay her head down on his lap, "What was it this time?"

"I was walking down a long hallway and I went into this room…the floor was a mirror. A voice called out and told me to come, so I did…and it told me to stop and look down. When I did the floor was gone and I fell. I fell into some black place and it talked to me." She said and he leaned back more against the head board and she shifted her head to rest on his stomach while she remained curled up tight in her little ball, "It said something about one being two but still being one and that I couldn't change that. Then it said something about one dying and the other crying…"

"Then it said something about the earth shaking or breaking and that we all will die." He finished knowing how they ended by heart, "And it attacked you."

"It was…white and…bloody, and it had Mother's eyes. Neji, it had my mother's eyes and it tried to kill me."

"Your m-mother would _n-never_ do that, Zu-chan." Hinata whispered as she walked in the door in her night gown and sat down on the other side of her childhood friend, "She loved you with all of h-her heart."

"I know, Hinata-chan." She said and jumped as she heard a door slam and Neji growled before he sat up and shifted Zukiyo over to his cousin as he got up off the bed still growling.

"Nii-san, don't." Hinata started but stopped when Neji raised a finger to silence her.

"Stay with Zuzu."

He walked out of the door and closed it behind him as Zukiyo lay her head down in Hinata's lap. They sat like that in silence for a while listening to the sounds of the house until they heard voices. Zukiyo knew one was Neji but she couldn't make out what was being said. Hinata knew and Zukiyo knew that by the way Hinata began brushing her friend's hair back out of her face. Hinata had many nervous ticks, and this was one of them.

"Hina-chan?" she asked softly and Hinata stopped.

"Y-Yes?"

"Don't leave me alone."

"Okay, Zuzu-chan. I won't. Get some sleep." She said and they heard a loud crash making Zukiyo sit up straight as Hinata ran to the door and opened it.

Naruto stopped briefly as he passed by, eyes glowing red orange, and spoke to Hinata.

"I'll take care of it, Hina-chan. Stay with Zukiyo." He said and kissed her forehead before walking off after stating one last thing, "Close the door."

She nodded and walked back in closing the door behind her as Zukiyo stared back at her. Hinata blushed as she pressed her fingers together in her childhood nervous tick.

"I-I…h-h-he….w-w-we…" she began stuttering and Zukiyo smiled as she giggled.

"Hinata you little _minx_." Zukiyo laughed, "Or should it be vixen?"

"Um…i-it's…um…heh?" Hinata said and Zukiyo scooted forward on the bed and had to ask.

"You must tell me! Does he _really_ taste as good as he smells?" she asked and Hinata sighed dreamily before realizing she did and then passed out, "Ok…"

She got up off of the bed and walked over to her friend as she came around. The last time Zukiyo had seen Hinata faint was after she asked her why she had…bite…marks… Oh.

"Yeah. Vixen." Zukiyo smiled and hugged her friend, "I am happy for you. He seems to care a lot about you…and I'm sorry I tried to eat him."

Hinata giggled as they walked into Zukiyo's sitting room and sat on the couch.

"I'm s-sorry I didn't t-tell you b-before. I…" Hinata started as she flipped on the TV.

"I know. You couldn't risk news of it reaching your father…_or_ Yukiko." Zukiyo stated and Hinata nodded and they heard another crash and muffled yelling.

"This is _MY_ house!" they heard Naruto yell clearly before the shouts muffled again.

"I cause chaos where ever I go it seems." Zukiyo stated slightly amused and Hinata turned to what looked to be a rerun of some vampire show, "Oo…let's watch this and make fun of it."

"Ok, Zu." Hinata stated and they watched the TV, Zukiyo still curled into a ball but at least sitting up, and Hinata spoke a few minutes later, "I like your room."

"Hm?" Zukiyo asked and tore her attention away from the TV, "Oh…thanks. I think."

"Each room is unique to who stays in it. Yours feels very soothing. It's something the house does. Naru-kun doesn't even understand it." Hinata stated, "I personally think the house is alive and…umm…reflects different…things…of your personality or…things you…need. That sounded a lot better in my head."

Zukiyo smiled and giggled slightly causing Hinata to do something similar before they shared a laugh. The princess didn't much like Hyuga Hiashi but she would always hold a place for him in her heart just because he helped create Hinata.

"It's been quiet for a while." She replied and Hinata nodded, "Do you think they killed each other?"

"No. There would have been more bangs and explosions." Hinata replied so seriously that Zukiyo soon found herself laughing as did Hinata until they heard a door slam again.

A minute or so later there was a soft knock on the door to the living area and Hinata told them to come in. Neji walked in followed by Naruto. Zukiyo smiled softly at them and yawned as the two men sat down on the couch.

"Can I hang with you guys?" Naruto asked and Zukiyo looked at him strangely.

"It's your house. You can do what you want." She answered and he laughed.

"Yeah, but it's still nice to ask."

"True, and…yes. You can hang. We're making fun of this vampire show on TV." Zukiyo stated and pointed to it.

"Alright." He said and leaned back into the couch as the world outside the window brightened and light swept over the valley.

"Neji, could you be a dear and close the drapes?" Zukiyo asked and he nodded, "I don't really like the light."

"I'm surprised you're up. You must be tired." Naruto stated and Zukiyo shrugged.

"I'm too restless to sleep right now I guess. That and, I mean, I'm pretty sure you stuck me right next to someone that probably wants to kill me so that doesn't exactly compel me to sleep." She stated as Neji sat back down and she leaned on him as he nodded agreeing with her.

"Gaara doesn't want to kill you." Naruto stated and she stared at him disbelieving, "He's just cranky right now. He just got back from a long trip to somewhere he didn't really want to go and had to sit on a plane for hours. He's just cranky and suffering from jet lag. He'll come around to it."

"Eventually." Hinata said as her eyes began to close while she leaned into Naruto making Zukiyo smile and elbow Neji when he began to growl.

"Hina-chan, go to bed. I'm ok." Zukiyo stated smiling.

"I'm staying here. You asked me to so I am." Hinata protested.

"Then go lay down in my bed. It's big enough for like five people." The princess returned and Hinata nodded before getting up and going to lie down.

Not long after Zukiyo stood up from the couch as the two men sat there asleep and decided that if she couldn't sleep she would at least unpack. As she did so a certain male vampire was standing outside her door debating what to do with her.

**A/N: There you go! Next chapter will hopefully be out soon as I usually say. Umm…feel free to give me some feedback. I LOVE feedback. Ciao! **


	4. Chapter 4: Competition

**A/N: I'm BACK! Sorry for the wait. Been suffering from writer's block as well as a cold so I've been kinda sluggish with the writing. Not going to keep you here anymore so R&R! I love feedback. And the usual: I DO NOT own Naruto unfortunately only the idea and my own OCs.**

Chapter 4: Competition

Gaara stood staring at the wood of the door as he heard her move around on the other side. He could still smell her too and it made him growl. Damn Naruto and his scheming ways. That damn fox had been bugging him for decades, ever since the Hyuga woman came along actually, about why the pureblood had never tried to find himself a mate or even some kind of girlfriend. The simple truth was that he saw no reason to do such a thing. Gaara had better and more important things to pour his time and energy into than pouring it into searching for and winning over a woman. He had told Naruto as much and now wish he didn't. Somehow Gaara knew that was what prompted his demonic friend to go and shove this woman at him.

There was no place for her here. Normally he would just have killed her since she was competition, but Naruto's and Neji's words still rung in his head from their… conversation earlier and it gave him pause.

"_You don't know her. Don't you dare judge her based off of one sentence that you weren't supposed to even hear_."

It wasn't his fault the damn Hyuga left the door open. If he wanted a private moment alone with the female he should have closed the door. She obviously wanted to be alone with him. There was no other reason the red head could think of that would lead to a female clinging to a male like that. She was very clearly in love with the Hyuga. It was a ridiculous emotion, pointless even, but she did seem to have plenty of it for him. It made Gaara wonder what had really gotten into Kankuro's and Naruto's heads. Did they not see it? She was soft…too soft.

"_Would you do it, Gaara? Kill your own sister in cold blood? Sure, you threaten it enough but would you actually do it? _Could_ you?_"

If Temari ever tried to kill him? Yes, he could kill her. Easily…well, fairly easily. Even if it _did_ bother him, he'd get over it eventually and everything would be for the better. It wasn't his fault this newcomer was afraid to get her hands dirty. Life wasn't fair, it's hard and you have to do certain things to survive. Kill or be killed. It was time she learned that. Besides, why should he care?

"_It would be polite to show a little concern. Just a little since asking for any more than that is pointless. You're 218 years old, Gaara, and I know you learned some manners along the way. Use them._"

That he could do if he wanted. The question was did he? Did he want to be polite to this new female? She _was_ rather powerful. Sure he held her back easily but he could do that to Naruto when the demon wasn't pissed. He knew there was power, power he could use, in that body. The body wasn't a bad thing in itself. Otherwise he would have never pulled her off of Naruto like that. She wasn't the most beautiful vampire he had ever seen, but she wasn't the worst. Not by a long shot, but it wasn't enough for him to just accept that she was here.

He had specifically told Naruto not to let anymore pureblood vampires live with them. Being Naruto, however, the demon of course had to ask why. The simple truth was that it caused chaos. Temari had tried once to explain the hierarchy to Naruto once but the blonde just didn't grasp it. Instead he asked, since the Hyuga duo hadn't caused any problems, what the big deal was. The big deal, she went on to explain as Gaara held his head in his hands very frustrated, was that the clans usually avoided each others territories as a way to maintain a peaceful coexistence and balance of power. Still no matter how she tried Temari just couldn't explain it fully. Gaara couldn't really explain it either it was just one of those things that just _was_.

Naruto would never understand it because he was a demon. It was practically impossible to _explain_ the complicated way the vampire hierarchy worked since most of it was pure instinct that all vampires were born with. Regardless he still should have understood that it was simply not a good idea to have two top predators living in the same house let alone city. That she was a top predator he had no doubts.

She may have been soft when it came to her predicament with her sister and her infatuation with Neji but he could tell that when it came to her food she wasn't soft in anyway. He could tell that by how she stalked after Naruto.

Gaara growled as he scowled at the door. Naruto was going to pay for his meddling. He didn't need the Kyuubi Demon throwing women at him…well, woman at him. The red haired vampire began to pace back and forth up the hall considering what he would do. Naruto knew him well enough to know not to throw just anyone at him. The demon would have only risked Gaara's wrath if he knew that the woman was worth Gaara's time.

Knowing this it made the vampire curious. What did the female posses that would make Naruto plan such a thing? What could she possibly have that he would want? Sure, she had power he could use but he was stronger than her as it was and the question was: Did he really need more power? Sure he wanted it and could use it but he didn't really need it badly enough for him to want to take on a mate. That would mean that there was something else she had that he would want…and Naruto knew what it was. What did Naruto know that Gaara did not?

"_I know very well Naruto won't tell me. That means I'm going to have to find out myself so I can't just kill her until _after_ I find out._" Gaara thought to himself as he stared at the door and rested his chin on his hand as he did and realized what he would have to do.

It would be easy enough to do and when it was done he could kill her, but not until afterwards. If Naruto wanted to him to play nice then he would play nice, but only on his own terms until he learned what he needed to. Gaara heard the movement stop on the other side of her door as the handle began to twist.

Zukiyo was positive there was someone standing on the other side of her door so she decided to open it to see who it was. She had a guess since she could faintly smell him but wasn't sure what he would want of her. Well, he probably wanted to kill her but she would be damned if she went down without a fight. When she opened the door and looked up Zukiyo found herself staring right into two black rimmed jade eyes which were staring down at her emotionlessly. However she could see the curiosity behind that mask of indifference.

"Can I help you?" she asked while raising an eyebrow at the male pureblood before her and watched as he looked at her while searching for an answer.

"I just wanted to…apologize for my behavior earlier. No doubt you heard all of it." he finally stated and bowed slightly, "I am sorry."

Zukiyo looked him over again and nodded. He was up to something. She could tell from his presence that he wasn't one to apologize that quickly for anything even if he _was_ wrong. Well, if he wanted to play with her, fine but he better not expect to win; this princess could play mind games too.

"You are forgiven. According to my gracious host you have just recently returned from some trip. I personally hate anything to do with airplanes so I can understand the crankiness on your part." She stated and smiled at him, "If you would be so kind as to show me to the kitchen I think I could find it in me to say we just start over with the whole introductions thing. I'm _very_ hungry and Naruto is passed out on my couch so I don't think it would be wise for me to stay in the same room as him on an empty stomach."

"I would have to agree with you." Gaara admitted and turned, "Follow me. I will show you the way."

She looked at him and raised an eyebrow. The male vampire rolled his eyes as he sighed and looked back at her with a bored yet very slightly amused expression.

"_Please_ follow me." He stated and she chuckled and nodded as she began to follow him silently until he spoke a few minutes later, "I don't think you ever told me your name. If I'm going to be living in the same house as you I'd like to know what to call you."

"Zukiyo. Most people call me Zu. Neji and Hinata call me Zuzu but they're my oldest friends so I wouldn't call me that if I were you. Then there is the ever more popular growing Kijo. I may _be_ a she-devil, but that doesn't mean I'm particularly fond of that nickname." Zu answered as they walked down the stairs and she looked straight ahead as he studied her.

Gaara could tell this woman was a predator just by the way she walked. It was the walk of a silent, powerful, and confident predator. She was dressed for bed, which was normal enough, but she also had a scarf wrapped around her neck. The red head found this odd. There was no reason for the scarf to be there. Sure she was wearing one when he first saw her but she had just arrived so he didn't think much of it then, but since it was still there it caught his attention.

"You do realize that staring is rude." She said suddenly making him pause ever so slightly in shock.

"And you do realize that you're the first person to move in with us in about 35 years."

"Still. There are other more subtle ways to study me other than silent staring. You could…I don't know…interrogate me and study me while I am distracted answering you, or you could make some other kind of friendly conversation." Zukiyo stated then glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes and Gaara saw them catch the light in a way that made them almost shine silver as they smiled at him amusedly, "Then again you don't look like the conversational type."

"I'm not. I say what I need to and rarely waste my time on idle conversation." The male stated and Zukiyo smiled slightly.

"Yet here you are conversing with me about something that is essentially just pointless banter when you get right down to it." she stated and looked left then right when they entered a hallway.

"Left, and I said I rarely do this…not never." He stated and smirked at her as she rolled her eyes.

"Well excuse me for misunderstanding." She stated as she walked ahead of him then stopped suddenly and groaned, "I'm hungry…"

"Breathe. Take a deep breath and count to ten." He said and she shook her head.

"It doesn't work like that with _me_." The hungry female growled as she turned to look at him, eyes consumed by a hungry black haze, "I can't just stop being hungry, I can't control this…I _need_ to feed."

"You know you don't stand a chance against me." Gaara stated calmly as he walked towards her and she hissed at him, "Try to feed on me and I'll kill you."

"No…you won't." she growled at him as she began to circle him, "Neji already told me of Naruto's rules. One of which is: There is to be no bloodshed in the house."

"Another is: There is to be no feeding in the house. We keep blood in the house to keep the thirst at bay between feedings, but that is all." He replied as he stood calmly and patiently until she stopped in front of him and looked up at him.

"I was never very good at rules." She stated and smiled the same way she did at Naruto earlier and he smiled the same smile back.

"Go ahead then. Try it. I was never good at rules either, but unlike you I stand a chance at living if I upset Naruto." Gaara threatened which earned him an odd response.

Instead of making her afraid, concerned, worried, or even intimidated it made her smirk at him. This confused the male vampire greatly. In all of his 218 years no one had ever smirked at that smile. Her eyes had changed back to their normal light grey color but Gaara could still see the hunger beneath the smile in them.

"We could do this all day and night. Throwing threats and pointless banter at each other until the others wake and wonder what in hell we've been doing but it wouldn't fix what started this. I'm hungry and I need blood." She stated seriously, "That glass of blood you fed me was the first time I had eaten in two weeks."

"Are you insane?" he asked shocked, "How-"

"Let's just say it wasn't my choice to deny myself of blood." Zukiyo interrupted and Gaara noticed a slight shift in the light in her eyes as he looked at her questioningly and she sighed, "I…was denied the right to feed by someone more powerful than I. I do not wish to talk of it."

"Come, the kitchen where we keep the blood is right around the next corner." He stated and she nodded as she followed him into the kitchen and allowed him to serve her a glass, "You are from the Kamitsuyo clan aren't you, Zukiyo?"

She looked up at him flatly as she took a sip from the glass. The exiled princess sat as she let the blood roll over her tongue while she though of an appropriate answer. Zukiyo couldn't deny that she was just a little bit shocked at his knowledge of her clan, nor could she deny that she felt a slight bit of worry that he would know her status in the clan.

"I am." She simply stated and watched as the male sat down on the other side of the table and looked at her with interest in his eyes, "How did you know?"

"I'm not an idiot. Your clan is essentially our kind's royalty so everyone will have at least heard of the name Kamitsuyo. Besides I know more about Hinata and Neji than Naruto does so I know which clan they serve under."

"True, my clan is essentially royalty, but I could have come from one of the lesser clans that also serve mine. You'd have to know more of the Kamitsuyos than that to come to the conclusion you did. What else do you know?"

"Well it's common knowledge that the Queen is dead. Akahana-heika supposedly-"

"Akahana-heika has been dead for over 30 years." Zu interrupted not wishing to once again hear that filthy rumor about her mother, "The new queen is no where near as great as our dearly departed monarch was."

"So I've heard." Gaara stated flatly, wondering why this woman would have interrupted him, and then continued, "Yukiko-heika is rumored to be losing her mind from her refusal to feed. That is how I determined your clan. The Queen has been forcing the other members of the clan to stop feeding or confining those that do feed and denying them blood or so I've heard."

"You have heard correctly, sir. If your next question is what I did to be confined my answer will be nothing of your concern. If your next question after that is how I escaped…well I have a few dear old friends and one new one to thank for that. Details are not important." Zukiyo stated simply with an air that Gaara knew meant he wasn't going to get any details from her that easily.

All he could do was nod in understanding as she finished her glass and sighed. Gaara watched with a cool disinterest in his eyes as she sat back in the kitchen chair and closed her eyes. He took this opportunity to study her a little more.

Her hair was not black as he had originally thought; instead it was a very dark brown that bordered on black. Currently it was pulled back into a pony tail. Her ears were slightly too large for her head he discovered but it wasn't really that noticeable. That was the only fault he found he could see on her and even that wasn't really a fault. Overall she was quite pretty, but, as he had stated before, that alone couldn't be why Naruto was doing this. The reason had to lie in her ties to the Kamitsuyo clan. That had to be it, but the question as to what the reason was exactly still remained.

**A/N: There you go, Chapter 4. Chapter 5 is in the works. Review and/or message me and THANK YOU! I have nothing else to say other than that.**


	5. Chapter 5: Royalty, Loyalty, & Lies

**A/N: Happy belated Halloween. Sorry for the long wait, lots of stuff has happened to keep me from writing. So for your wait here is an extra long chapter of vampiric goodness. LOTS of flash backs to give you a more in depth history of Zukiyo. The usual: I don't own Naruto or the Naruto characters. Everything else though is MINE. Read and Review or message with comments. I love hearing from people.**

Chapter 5: Royalty, Loyalty, & Lies

As Gaara sat there examining her, Zukiyo sat back and let him do so as she played their conversation so far over in her head. So far it seemed as if he was only trying to figure out who she was, but Zu understood that there was a hidden meaning behind the questions she just didn't know exactly what it was. She could guess that what he really wanted to know was what her "rank" was and was for once grateful at that moment that her existence this far outside her clan was largely unknown.

Zukiyo had always been treated as the unneeded one in the eyes of her clan's Elders. In fact there were only two or three of the dozens of them that even acknowledged her as a princess let alone that she even existed. The only times that the others did was when they saw fit to bring up any trouble she caused to her parents or the council itself. She knew why, too: They couldn't dare deny her existence or title in front of her parents, especially her father. It was no secret that Zukiyo was the king's favorite. As a father he loved both of his children but still favored his youngest. As such it was disastrous for anyone to deny her existence or title in front of him. Still once he was out of ear shot they went back to pretending she was invisible. Outside of the clan's inner sanctum she was known, as was her title, but only within a certain range.

That must have been one of the reasons Hinata and Neji decided to bring her _here_. It was practically on the other side of the world from her clan, her reputation, and her "status" making it so that she was virtually an unknown here. Here Zukiyo would be just a regular, female, pureblood vampire. While that kind of appealed to her in a way it also set off warning bells in her mind.

_That_ must be the reason Neji is so upset with her room location and why Naruto gave her those rooms in the first place. Gaara was a single, male pureblood and she was a single, _female_ pureblood. Someone was trying to play match maker it seemed. Zukiyo opened her eyes as soon as she felt the presence of the male move.

Gaara froze as he started to stand as soon as he saw her eyes open. Her light grey eyes searched him as if trying to determine his intentions. When he picked up the glass she had been drinking from and took it to the sink to wash it she relaxed. After a minute or so, Zukiyo stood up with the intent to return to her room, which she had no idea how to return to, and once again found Gaara staring intently at her. She coolly raised an eyebrow at him when she did only to see his stare drop down into an almost flat glare that was seemingly almost a bored expression. Still underneath that façade of indifference lay the same thing as before: pure and simple curiosity. Zukiyo internally smiled. It amused her that this man, who was by far more powerful than she was, was nothing more than a curious cat.

"_Lions and tigers are cats, Zu. With sharp claws and really big teeth._" Her inner self stated cautiously.

"_Uh huh. Yeah, I know. I lived around them as you well know, I'm sure I can handle this one._" She told her inner self the same way she usually did when it tried to err on the side of caution then spoke to the red head in front of her, "I wish to return to my room, but honestly I have no idea of how to get back to it."

The only thing he cold really do at this point, since he wished to return to his own room, was lead her back. Which he did silently, something that did not bother the exiled princess one bit. She was starting to feel her eyelids succumb to the seductive pull of sleep once more. Upon reaching her bedroom door all she could manage was a short and rather curt sounding thank you before walking in and shutting the door almost in Gaara's face. However, instead of this offending him or reigniting his temper, the red head found it a little…amusing.

The next morning Naruto woke to find himself still on his newest guest's couch with Neji propped up on the other arm of the couch still asleep. This surprised him a bit. Whenever Neji and Hinata would visit it was Neji who was always up first, never Naruto. It didn't take him long to determine the reason behind his waking. Through the door to the adjoining bedroom Naruto could hear pacing and hushed voices. The footsteps did not belong to his vixen; they were lighter and much quicker than Hinata's, but one of the voices were most definitely hers.

"Zu, let me go get you a glass. Please. Just until Nii-san wakes up." Hinata pleaded to her friend, who was already dressed and ready to go, a testament to how hungry she must be since Zukiyo was not an early riser by nature.

"No. I need to hunt. I need a full meal." The exiled one stated, pacing back and forth, eager to get out and feed but there was one problem: Kamitsuyo Zukiyo hunted alone these days.

She would of course go out _to_ hunt accompanied by Neji and Hinata if not other people, but when it came to the actual hunting she would do so alone. It wasn't always so, but her father's death changed everything. Yukiko stated that she had stripped Zukiyo of her title, an impossible feat since even the queen did not have the power to strip the title of a princess of the clan let alone the Heir Apparent, before they left but the fact was that Zu hadn't been a princess for decades. Some would argue that she never was and of course be wrong. There used to be a time in which she accepted her title and position, but those days were long past. The day that her father died was the day she abandoned her title, her position, and everything that went with the station of Princess, or rather she tried. No matter what she tried to do there were some that still went after her because of her title in the vampiric world. She was a heavily sought after target for vampire hunters…regardless of where she went.

"Zu, you _cannot_ just go. You don't know the city at all. You'll get lost and you know that no city is without hunters. This one has only a few but they're still here. Wait for Neji to wake up." Hinata pleaded once again, "He should be up soon."

"Very well." Zukiyo stated waving her hand irritably and walked into her closet to finish getting dressed.

It wasn't too long after that Gaara watched as Neji escorted Zukiyo out of the house to go feed. If he was to find out more about this newcomer, the red head was going to have to get her away from the Hyuga male. The only question was _how_.

The exiled princess knew he was watching her as they left but the only thing she was concerned with at that moment was hunting and feeding. So much so that she wasn't even cognizant of having gotten in the car until they were half way down the mountain. In Zukiyo's mind the drive into the city took an eternity. She knew he was going as fast as legally allowed just as well as she knew that Hinata was right to make her wait. It wasn't safe for Zukiyo to be out on her own in some foreign city. Zukiyo, deep down, understood this as she stared out the window at the passing world and once again let her thoughts and memories drift back to a moment in time where she knew she was safe…

_February 27__th__, 1807_

"_Papa! Papa!" the little princess called out, running as fast as her little legs could carry her through the dimly lit halls of the ancestral Kamitsuyo Manor, "PAPA!"_

_The king stepped out of a doorway, his steps quickening to the urgency in his youngest's voice, and glared down two of the clan's council members as they stalked after her with an obvious anger. As he did so, the young Zukiyo hid behind her father's legs while clinging to them._

"_What do you want?" the king asked bluntly, not pleased with whatever had caused his little girl to come running for him. _

"_Kenzo-heika, Zukiyo…hime has once again utterly refused to sit and study with Yukiko-hime and the tutor. Instead she was caught trying to sneak out of the manor to head down to that blasted…gypsy carnival…I did not mean it like that!" the council member stated, once again forgetting that that "blasted gypsy carnival" was very dear to the king._

"_Get. Out. Of. My. Sight…_Now_." The king growled out curtly and the two council members hastily bowed and left._

"_I only wanted to go see ShuShu and Bampa. They said yesterday that Mi-tan was gonna be home today from her trip." Zukiyo stated, looking up at her beloved father with large silver colored eyes filled with nothing but confusion and innocence as he picked her up._

"_Little Princess, you have to finish your studies before you can go see them." He stated while walking down the hallway with her and she pouted in disappointment, "That and it's February. There's snow on the ground and you cannot go out without warmer clothes on. Too much cold can kill us little angel."_

"_It can't kill Mother and Sister." The little princess stated rather defiantly._

"_No, it can't kill Mother and Sister, but they are different from the two of us."_

"_How?" she asked, all curious innocence now._

"_I'll tell you when you're older, but for now it's time to get you dressed up all nice and warm if we're going to go see your grandparents." The king stated which caused his little curly haired angel's eyes to light up as a smile burst across her face. _

"_REALLY?" she asked and he nodded which caused her to excitedly start putting on any warm clothes she could find before suddenly hugging him tightly, "I love you, Papa." _

_Minutes later found father and daughter making the trip into the encampment where a troupe of gypsies had set up what seemed to be a carnival of sorts. The king carried his daughter past most of the diversions, deep into the back of the carnival where a campfire was blazing. Three figures sat around it, three people that both father and daughter held dear to them._

"_Our little gypsy princess has returned." A woman's voice called out and Zukiyo giggled happily as she ran over to her grandmother._

_There was nothing that Zukiyo loved more than being with her family, her father's family. They were different from the clan; wild, untamable, exotic, and free. Her father's family was a family of oddballs, he being an oddball among them. Where he was quiet, calm, and stern they were loud, unpredictable, and easygoing…most of them at least. Even in physical appearance they were oddballs…most of them._

"_Ma, let her breathe." The king stated as his mother proceeded to hug his daughter tightly._

"_Su…SU…SUMIRE! Let her down." the king's father stated to his wife._

_Ryouma Hiryu, or Bampa as his granddaughter tended to call him, had dark eyes much like the king's except their warmth was right on the surface and usually were shining with a permanent, though rather wicked, amusement. Although he appeared no older than 30, his hair was a light silver grey, long and pulled back very much like Neji's usually was, which made him stand out rather loudly in a crowd._

"_Fine." The woman in question, Sumire, stated and set her giggling granddaughter down._

_Sumire, or ShuShu as she was dubbed by Zukiyo after shooing away a small group of kids one day, was a seemingly normal young woman in her late twenties with hair much like the princess's: a near black curly brown, until you looked at her eyes. The king's mother had the strangest color eyes, they were a light purple that darkened or lightened with her mood. Zukiyo loved them as whenever they were set on the little princess, they were shining with a deep and unending love and adoration…if not a constant worry that she was much too skinny._

"_I swear she hasn't been eating enough though…she's so small and skinny."_

"_She is not, Ma. I was just as small and skinny at her age." The king's younger sister stated._

_Misora, or Mi-tan, was the exotic beauty of the family and the Head Oddball. That was something that no one could deny since, where her brother had inherited the more "normal" features of their parents, she had inherited the "abnormal" ones: long silver grey hair with a light curl to it, and light purple eyes. As with Sumire, Zu loved her aunt's eyes, but she loved them for an entirely different reason. Although they looked at her with love, they also looked at her with a profound need to protect the little princess. Zukiyo loved them for that, because, although she knew her aunt hid a deep and at times overwhelming grief from her, the princess knew that she was safe wherever her aunt was. Ryouma Misora would never willingly allow any harm come to her favorite, and in her eyes _only_, niece._

"_Mi-tan! I missed you so much!" the little girl said excitedly while bouncing quite energetically then smiled brightly as her aunt picked her up._

"_I missed you too, Zuzu. We're here now."_

"_Huh?_

"_We're here."_

"Zu, we're here." Neji called out once again to her.

"Oh! Good." Zu said recovering quickly and listened to Neji explain the city while they approached their destination.

"The entire city and a few miles beyond the city limits is the territory of the Sabaku Siblings that live with Naruto. Gaara and his older brother Kankuro maintain it with extreme and rather forceful methods. Before you go on about how: 'No single family or whatever can hold a territory that big'; I'll tell you that the sole reason they can do it is, as you may have guessed, is because of Gaara. He is the single most powerful vampire on this half of the planet. Not as strong as Yukiko's husband…not even close, but he's strong enough by himself to hold down that much of an area." Neji went on to explain.

As he further explained the city itself was split into five sections: North, East, South, West, and Midtown. Each section was fairly distinct from the others and varied in size. The North Side was the smallest and was mostly the "upper class" housing, private schools, and the Millennium Mall among other higher end shopping options. The East Side was the third largest area and was made up mostly of theatres, clubs, and restaurants.

"Kankuro, he's the one with the brown hair, he runs a few of the clubs on the East Side. He'll tell you he got bored so just up and decided to start one and opened more as they got more popular. Get him behind the bar mixing something up and you'll know why."

The South was the largest section mostly since it was a more residential area and probably could have been considered a suburb of the city. The fairgrounds were located there as was a farmer's market. The West was the second largest and the oldest section of the city and the "bad side of town". Most of the city's abandoned buildings were located here and the crime rate was high in this section of the city, however it did have its good points. It housed some of the best little diners and pizza stands in the area, and, remarkably, the people there were fairly friendly once they knew you weren't going to rob them or something of the like.

"We don't normally hunt there. They have it hard enough as it is and they're good people. That and they know everything that goes on in this city. We need to know something, we go ask them." Neji added and got the reaction he expected: a flat uncaring stare from Zukiyo then continued to explain the city out of a pure necessity to do so, "Midtown is pretty much the center of all life in this city."

As Neji further explained Midtown was pretty much a mini Times Square. It had everything from big name brand stores and restaurants to little Mom & Pop stores and dives. Clubs, theatres, apartments…you could find just about a little of everything in Midtown. On top of all this each section of the city had its own park area or two.

However, Zukiyo did not really care about any of this at the time. All she cared about was feeding. Her male companion knew this by the look in her eyes. Neji could read her like a book by the look in her eyes when she wasn't guarding herself. Right now they were screaming two things: "I'm hungry," and "I miss them…"

The Hyuga knew who she was thinking about and couldn't help but remember them too as he escorted her to an area to hunt in. Zukiyo acted as expected as soon as he lead her somewhere he deemed safe enough and went off to hunt on her own. It didn't surprise him, it never did. He realized from the very first day in her company that Kamitsuyo Zukiyo lived her life separately from others like her.

Yukiko was a noble, a dementedly insane one yes, but still a noble. She was prim, proper, and stiff. Zukiyo was something else entirely. She was still a noble, a princess in ways her sister could never hope to be, but she was more a gypsy than anything…a gypsy princess. Zu lived her life separately from her sister and was raised separately as well most of the time. Yukiko was raised by the clan where as Zukiyo was raised by her father's family.

Neji clearly remembered the day he first met them…

_December 30,1808_

"_Hime?" the young Hyuga asked as he heard the sound of sniffling in a secluded drawing room off the hallway he was exploring. _

"_No." a quiet voice that he recognized as Zukiyo's answered, although it amazed him that he could already tell the difference between the two twins' voices._

_He stepped into the room more and saw her there curled up in a chair in the corner miserably as she wiped her eyes. He couldn't help but think at that moment that she looked trapped. Her eyes screaming a desperate plea of: "Please gods…take me away from this place." _

_He'd always heard Hinata quietly talk of stories of princesses trapped in towers by evil beings but he never thought he'd actually see something like that for real. He'd only known the youngest princess for less than two days at this time but he still couldn't help but feel for her. She was trapped in very much the same way he was it seemed, but she was still a princess...and yet when he called to her she said no. This confused his young mind._

"_Zukiyo-hime?" He asked again…curious as to what had upset the princess so much._

"_Stop calling me Hime." She sniffled again and wiped her eyes with the sleeve of her dress, "Yuyu is Hime. I'm Zu. Just Zu. Not Hime."_

"_Yes you are. You're a princess just like she is…" Neji stated not quite understanding what was going on and wishing that Hinata was here to help with this as he sensed someone else enter the room._

"_Zuzu, sweetheart, what happened?" a woman with very long, curly silver hair and purple eyes asked as Neji stared at her with a bit of amazement._

_He'd never seen anyone quite like her. He knew who she was; she was Ryouma Misora, the king's sister and had been described to him by his uncle. However, having her described was no where near actually seeing her in person. Misora, to him, rivaled the queen in beauty. She was slightly taller than the queen was as well as having a more toned and filled out figure with much paler lips, being a light pink against her pale skin, much like her brother's in fact. She had many of his facial features, only _much_ more feminine. However, in many ways she was like an opposite of the king. The king was a tall, very imposing, and slightly rough presence whereas his sister was much more welcoming and gentle. This woman walked with a practiced grace and ease towards the little princess and knelt beside her just as fluidly. Her eyes looked up at the little princess, two shining purple pools of love and adoration…and something else that Neji noticed._

_There was something very sad hidden deep down in her light purple eyes. Neji wouldn't find out why it was there for many more years but it caused him to label her as something of a melancholy beauty. _

"_Yuyu pushed me again and told me I wasn't important enough to play with her. And then the tutor lady yelled at me 'cause I told her doilies were stupid…and sent me here to 'think about what I said'." The little princess sniffed again and Neji watched as her aunt gently wiped away her tears, "I don't want to be in here anymore."_

_Neji watched silently as Zukiyo was picked up by her aunt, who she clung to for dear life it seemed. It wasn't even that. It was more along the lines of a confused child clinging to one of the only people that understood them._

"_Let's go to the carnival hmm?" Misora asked her niece and received a nod in response before she looked at Neji._

"_That's Neji, Mi-tan. He and Hinata are staying here with us now." _

"_I know, Zuzu." Her aunt answered and smiled warmlyand with a slight motherly twist to it at the young Hyuga, "Would you like to come too?"_

_Neji blinked, unsure of how to answer. He was told to stay with the princess and keep her happy. So far he found that task nearly impossible to do with Yukiko, who he and Hinata had been semi-forced by most of the council to spend the majority of their time with. His young mind felt about ready to explode from all the politics and injustices he'd seen since his arrival here. To him, Zukiyo was also a princess, and yet he was only told to stay with the one. His uncle told him that his cousin and he were supposed to be companions for _both_ the princesses but the majority of the council told him and Hinata there was only one. Hyuga Neji was raised to follow rules and protocol above all else but there were so many conflicting ones here that his head felt like it was spinning._

"_Forget what you were _told_ to do child. Forget all that and relax. I know it's hard for you to do…you're a Hyuga." Misora stated a bit teasingly and smiled at him in a way that he would always find caused him to smile, just a little bit, back, "If you want to come with us you can. Forget what the council tells you to do. You're not going to be committing treason by coming along with us. No matter what those simpletons say, Zukiyo is a princess too."_

"_I know that." He stated finally, "Where is Hinata-sama?"_

"_I believe she is hiding in the kitchens." Misora stated, a slightly sad and angry light flashing over her eyes for a second, "If you would like, we'll go get her and bring her along too."_

"_I'm supposed to keep an eye on her." Neji stated and the woman nodded knowingly._

"_Let's go get her then." _

_A half an hour or so later, after Misora reassured Hinata that Yukiko wouldn't be coming, they set out to exit the manor. They were almost to the door when they were stopped by a few select members of the council._

"_Where are you going?" a woman asked, slim, tall, dark and with facial features that could probably cut through glass._

"_Aya, it is of no concern to you where I am going." Misora stated as she walked._

"_Of course it is. You are carrying the princess's sister and are in the company of the princess's playmates."_

_Misora stopped and turned to stare down the woman as Hinata hid behind her, clinging to the top layer of the gypsy's many layered black skirt._

"_I am carrying my _niece_, who…is _also_ a princess…as you've been told many, many times by my brother as well as the queen. As for the 'playmates'…they are free to go where they choose. They do not belong to Yukiko. Now, you will move out of my way or I will bring this matter to my sister-in-law." Misora stated, her usually melodic voice gaining a hard and commanding edge to it._

_The woman of course moved. She very well couldn't disobey what was clearly an order from her superior, which Misora was. Neji soon learned afterwards that Ryouma Misora held the head council seat as well as was the king's personal advisor. _

_Not too long after Neji and Hinata followed Misora deep into the carnival, after getting distracted many times by various things, and came face to face with what Neji considered the happiest argumentative married couple in the world._

"_HIRYU! PUT ME DOWN!" a woman with a bit of an olive-like complexion that looked a bit like Misora, sharing her ears, nose, and eyes with her daughter, yelled at the man that was carrying her._

"_Make me." The man stated, a playfully wicked smile on his face as he carried his wife over his shoulder while she pounded at his back._

"_Hiryu…put me down this instant you scruffy, old, kidnapping…PIRATE!" she yelled again, although her own purple eyes glinted with pure amusement and mirth even as he tossed her down onto her rear and she glared at him._

"_I am not old and scruffy." He stated rather matter-of-factly and they both laughed as he helped his wife up and Misora shook her head at them…apparently this was a daily occurrence. _

"_Ma…Pa…we have company." The princess's aunt stated and the two, who Neji finally recognized were Ryouma Hiryu and Sumire._

_Neji watched with a slight happiness as the little princess immediately lit up as her grandmother picked her up and hugged her before turning to the two newcomers and smiling at them._

"_That is Neji and Hinata, ShuShu." Zukiyo stated brightly to her beloved grandmother who smiled as she nodded._

"_Hello, I'm Sumire. Zuzu's grandmother. That scruffy, old pirate over there is my husband, Hiryu."_

"_I am not scruffy and old." Hiryu stated once again and they glared at each other for a moment before Misora cleared her throat._

"_How would you two dears like a cookie?" was the next thing that she said and made Zukiyo bounce rather energetically._

"_What's the point?" Neji asked rather confused; they were vampires…why bother with human food?_

_Zukiyo then walked up to him with a rather large cookie and shoved it in his mouth playfully._

"_They taste good." She said and handed Hinata an equally large cookie before working at her own and Neji had to admit…she was right, "Come on. I'll show you around."_

_Next thing Neji or Hinata knew they were being dragged around by what they both knew as their new best friend. It was later as the three of them sat down and Neji watched as both Zukiyo and Hinata fell asleep curled up against each other that the young Hyuga boy realized a number of things…_

Neji was brought out of his reminiscing by the scent of someone he _really_ did not want there at that moment. He knew why they were there…but that didn't mean he wanted this particular person there at that very moment. That was the last thing he wanted.

"Gaara." Neji stated in a curt greeting as the red headed appeared after turning the corner, "She's hunting. Leave. Her. Alone."

"I intend to…" the stronger pureblood stated in a tone that made Neji's defensive instinct kick in.

"What the fuck do you want then?" he asked Gaara, knowing that there had to be some reason for this usually antisocial vampire to seek him out…and he was right.

"Who is she?" Gaara asked bluntly as it was not in his nature to waste time getting to what he really wanted.

Neji remembered right then and there what he realized so long ago: That he would protect Zukiyo no matter what. He would fight for her, kill for her, die for her…and even if it was against his own nature…he would _lie_ for her as well if he needed to.

"Kamitsuyo Zukiyo. You know that." He stated…_not a lie_.

"Hn. Why is she here?" The red head asked.

"It's as far away as she can get from the person that wants her dead." _Not a lie_.

"Why _here_?"

"It's the only place we could go where we knew she was safe." _Not a lie._

"What is she…her standing with the clan?"

"She's an outcast." _Not technically a lie._

"What is she to the clan?"

"A gypsy." _Bordering on it._

"…" obviously Gaara sensed that as his next question was much, _much_ more direct, "Does she have a title?"

"No…she has no titles." Neji lied.

**A/N: There you go. The long awaited update. Sorry it took so long I got distracted and caught up with stuff. I try not to let it happen but it does. Well I hoped you enjoyed it so Review and/or message. I love hearing from you all.**


	6. Chapter 6: Corrosion

**A/N: Next chapter up and ready. Not going to keep you any longer so the Usual: I don't own Naruto or the Naruto characters…the other ones though and this plot is ALL mine.**

**NOTE: The first part of the chapter may be a bit hard/confusing to read and maybe a **_**little**_** bit fucked up…it's SUPPOSED to be like that.**

Chapter 6: Corrosion

A room…where…what room…yes, yes, study. The walls…they're…they're dripping red!…no, wait…just plain red. No dripping to red stained puddles on the shifting floor tip tap tip tap tip tap…no drops making the floor ripple…no, just red walls and just the plain wooden floor…normal floor normal walls. Walls…closing in around…wait no…no they're not. Still…unmoving…solid…solid…Silver?

A window…a silver window. Wh-Who is that…on the other side? Pale…pallid skin...grey eyes…dull, desperate, dangerous, depressing, deranged?...delightful. Who is she…hair seems so…thin and not thin; so sticky yet smooth…pretty…poisoned…perfect. Grey…lots of grey…shirt grey, eyes grey, pants grey…lips…pale…bloodless. Good.

A door…why is it opening? Who…who is opening the door? Monster…with teeth to bite and claws to tear! No…no…man. Just a man.

"_**Who is he? Food…food…come to feed us? Must feed…blood…food…must eat…**__"_

A man bowed, fear evident in his eyes.

"_**Thunk THUNK…Thunk THUNK…Thunk THUNK…**__"_

"There…there is news…" he stated

"_**Feed…NO! No blood. Blood…no…No…NO!**_"

The man fidgeted nervously with his hat, eyes darting around in a steady nervous rhythm.

"_**La la La La La la la la la. Through the twisted maze she runs. On and on and on she runs and runs. Blood red tears dripping from her eyes… Hehehehehe…such a steady noise his eyes make…hehehe…pretty. Hehehe…but…but that blasted heart thumping ruins it. Hmph…**__"_

"It seems that…well…i-it seems…"

"_**He should just get on with it…always taking too long…too much time…not enough time...time is irrelevant…time is everything. Blood is irrelevant…will is everything…animals...people…places…things...oh good he's talking…wait…WAIT…NO, NO, IMPOSSIBLE!**__"_

"_WHAT_?" the queen shouted at the messenger, rage and fury flashing in a thunderhead across her steel grey eyes as the voices that rang throughout her mind ceased their usual chatter.

"T-They n-never arrived, Yukiko-heika." The messenger stated as he bowed, trembling slightly in fear at what would happen to him now that he had delivered the news that the queen's sister had disappeared along with the two Hyugas, "T-Their car was f-f-found in an e-empty lot. Z-Zukiyo-h-hime's restraints were found on t-th-the gr-ground next t-t-t-to it with the k…key in them."

Yukiko trembled with rage as her eyes darted around the room, pupils unnaturally small in the dim light as a few strands of her straight, and rather stringy, hair fell into her face.

Her constant companions started to panic, scream, yell, cry…echoing each other as they spoke in a frantic, droning, simultaneous dance of cascading syllables and sounds…oh why did they speak so loud…why…? Friends…yes…they're friends…they understand…not like Her.

"_**No…no…no…where is she? She could be anywhere! Over there…or there…or there…no. Ooohhh…WHY did this have to happen now? Everything was so PERFECT! Perfect in imperfection…beautiful little cracks and their chaotic patterns…hehehehe…not like Her. Not like the little monster. HOW COULD SHE HAVE GOTTEN AWAY?**__"_

She wanted to wring his neck for this…his fault…all his fault…wring it tight...

"_**Yes….fun…**__"_

To dig her nails into it…dig deeper and deeper so it runs…the pretty redness runs over fingers warm and inviting…

"_**Yes…yes…NO! No…that is the way of HER. The little monster. No. Can't do that. No. Die before being like her…never like her. Never. NEVER!**__"_

She looked at the man as he trembled before her, the sight silencing her companions again before they all agreed.

"_**Him…Hyuga…Hiashi…him…him! He KNOWS! Little man knows NOTHING! Useless! USELESS! WHY?**__"_

"Get out…and send me Hiashi." She commanded with an ice cold voice, eyes still darting around as if she expected Zukiyo to pop out of the walls at any time until they landed on the messenger again and glared, "_NOW!_"

The messenger got up and went as quickly as he could without actually breaking into a run.

"_**Bastard…fears wrong things…stupid, idiotic, moronic, repulsive…blood lusting bastard…like all the others…except dearest…yes…except him. **__** Must get rid of Her so can make him happy...yes...yes...little bitch…she must want him. That's it…that's it she wants to take everything! Just like Uncle said she did…yes…just like that…little thieving whore. Makes life difficult for Us.**__"_

Why did Zukiyo always have to make everything so much _harder_? She was always there in the shadows, lurking, waiting, and smiling…_always_ smiling that damnable smile. That smile that…that…_shouted_: "Here I am! I will _never_ leave you in peace! I am the monster that lurks inside you, _Sissy_. You will never…_ever_ escape me." She was too…always…_always_ there reminding Yukiko of what they were...blood lusting, murderous _animals_.

"_**Disgusting…uncivilized. Kijo…little she-devil BITCH. Never stops…always there smiling. Council right...she's a little mistake…a blemish on the world. A repugnant little temptress…always there…**__"_

Zukiyo was always there tempting Yukiko into slipping back into that state of…of…sweet…pure…animalistic rapture, but NO! …Not anymore. This, this, this…blood covered _Siren_ would be found and made to suffer for everything she had ever done to Yukiko. Everything…everything…in a room…room with walls…red walls…

"_**Pretty red walls…red like blood…darkly dripping down deeply to despairing depths of death. Dripping, flowing, oozing, POURING from a bleeding heart…HER heart…yes…yes…YES…HER HEART! Dripping…tip tap tip tap tip tap, flowing, sweet…tasty silence. Heeheeheehee…yes…yes.**__"_

Hyuga Hiashi received his summons as expected. He had been expecting this for almost two weeks, ever since he came across his daughter and nephew conspiring together after the trial. They told him of their plans after he had pressed them into it and they were shocked when he approved of them.

The Hyuga lord was one of the few members of the council that acknowledged Zukiyo as a princess. He also was one of the even fewer members that saw her as more than just a princess and instead the rightful heir. Hiashi had spent his whole life in the service of this clan and had watched the two princesses grow up. He watched Zukiyo live, play, _cower_ in the shadow of her older sister through the years just as he watched Yukiko's mind slowly rot more and more. Then there were the attempts to help the king and queen fix the rift that separated the two girls. Hiashi had witnessed the royal couple beg their eldest daughter to play with her sister and love her only to get the same cold, uncaring, dimly lit look in her eyes they always did. Time and time again he had also seen Zukiyo walk down the hallway towards where ever her sister was with the intent on playing. Time and time again he'd told her that maybe it wasn't such a good idea to disturb her sister…and time and time again he'd gotten some version of the same old response…

"_Today dif'ent. Sissy play today. Is Sissy."_ From when she was two or so.

"_Today is different. She'll play…she's my Sissy."_ From when she was about five or so.

"_Today is going to be different. You'll see. She'll play. She's…she's my Sissy."_ From the time she was eight until she stopped trying to play with her sister.

Still Hiashi watched the years fly by and could probably mark them with the different attempts from Zukiyo, and eventually his daughter and nephew, to get Yukiko to spend time with her and the others. He had watched every one of them fail too. His own daughter gave up so easily…but Zukiyo just kept on trying. She was very much like her namesake, her maternal grandmother, in her stubbornness…her refusal to give up.

This was partially the reason why Hyuga Hiashi would do something unprecedented for him to do tonight. His held fast belief that it was Zukiyo who should have been queen, not Yukiko, would lead him as well as a few of the other council members to do what they were going to do. What they _had_ to do.

They had to do something. Yukiko was never meant to be queen. Her refusal to feed had triggered the clan's age old dementia to set in permanently. Some days and moments were better than others but the fact that the queen wasn't all together _there_ was something that couldn't be ignored any longer. That was evident when she married the current king, a man by the name of Ichimotsu Yoko. A tall man with jet black naturally spiky hair and piercing black eyes, he was by far the strongest and most powerful pureblood that Hiashi had ever seen, but there was something that no one really liked about the man. On top of that there was his…history…with the Ryouma family that spoke much ill of him. This man had done things that even _Zukiyo_ would never do even in the wildest of any dream or nightmare. The gods themselves probably didn't know what led Yukiko to marry this man and make him king, but she did.

As the vampire lord of the Hyuga clan walked down the hallway towards the queen's study he could only hope that his daughter and nephew had found someplace safe to hide Zukiyo. They didn't tell him where they were going to hide her only that it was someplace far away, and he hoped it was far away enough. Someplace that would keep her hidden long enough for him and the few other council members in on this to come up with some plan of action. A plan of action unprecedented for the Hyuga clan and one that he would have to do something unprecedented for him to do in order to protect it. Hyuga Hiashi steeled himself for what awaited him and knocked at the door to the dimly lit, red-lined room where the queen waited…and then he went in.

Some hours later found him limping towards a designated meeting spot deep in the woods to the back of the ancestral manor of the Kamitsuyo clan. About half way through he suddenly became aware of a presence and stopped to survey the area. His clan, as many pureblood clans did, had one special trait passed down from parent to child…the Hyuga clan's was night vision of a sort even more heightened than that of a normal vampire's. With this he caught sight of the one following him and relaxed.

"It seems today we are both late." A silver haired man stated to Hiashi and pulled the Hyuga lord's arm over his shoulders to assist him in walking.

"Indeed it does seem that way, Hatake-san." Hiashi stated dryly, although he _was_ grateful for the assistance and his companion and he continued on towards the meeting place, "You were not followed I do hope."

"For awhile I was." Kakashi answered truthfully from behind the mask he always wore, the reason he did was unknown, as his mismatched eyes scanned the area quickly, "I managed to evade him after a while. What happened with your leg?"

"When we get to the rendezvous point I'll explain." Hiashi stated and his companion nodded.

Not too long after they arrived at the entrance to a cave, now sealed off with a door, and they knocked on it twice. Hiashi knew that their scents were being scrutinized before being allowed access. When it opened they were met by a very pregnant dark haired woman with startling reddish brown eyes. She ushered them in and shut the door behind them.

"Hiashi what happened with your leg?" she asked worriedly.

"In a minute Kurenai, let's get him seated." Kakashi stated and got the Hyuga lord seated at the table hidden deeper in the cave.

Hiashi looked at the faces around him. There were a few others besides Kakashi and Kurenai there that had always acknowledged Zukiyo, the others there only did so now out of necessity. He knew that and it displeased him a little but there was nothing he could do about it. Of those gathered he knew he could completely trust only a few there. Among them were of course Kakashi and Kurenai. The other he completely trusted was a man by the name of Nori. He was average in appearance really. Mousy brown hair, soft black unassuming eyes, and a seemingly soft spoken manner Nori was the last one you'd expect to be reliable or even capable of what they were here to do: Discuss rebellion.

"Hyuga-sama. You look as if you've seen some rough treatment." Nori stated in his usual soft manner, "I do hope you are ok."

"What news of Hime?" a female elder asked from the back, Aya by name if he remembered correctly, sharp chin thrust out arrogantly, as if she didn't have the time to be bothered with such trivial matters as the Hyuga's health.

"Zukiyo-hime is safe, as far as I am aware at least. Last night my daughter and nephew escaped with her instead of escorting her to the prison as Yukiko bid them to do. This had been their plan since the trial as you all know. However, as expected, Yukiko was not pleased with this development. She questioned me rather intensely…hence my leg."

"You didn't tell her anything I do hope." A male elder by the name of Kenji asked in a tone as severe as his features: close cut light blonde hair, sharp hazel eyes, and a square robust goatee covered chin on a similarly square head that was seated on top of a thickly corded trunk of a neck.

"Don't be an imbecilic fool, Kenji. Of course I didn't. If I did, would I be sitting here right now?" Hiashi snapped before continuing, "I am unaware of where they have taken Zukiyo-hime, however I am sure this is for the best. That way none of us can accidently betray her location to Yukiko or her husband. Where ever she is I am certain that she is safe…for now. We all know that it will not be long before she is found by the hunters that Yukiko has set after her."

"I am certain that she can take care of them as they come." Kakashi stated as he sat back in his chair at ease, "Zukiyo is no push over despite her being weaker than Yukiko. On top of that she has something with her that Yukiko does not: two best friends that are willing and ready to die for her if need be…if not more by now."

"Be that as it may, Hatake-sama, she will need _more_ than just that if we wish for her to live long enough to replace Yukiko." Nori interjected as politely as he could manage.

"Obviously the child needs guidance." Aya stated haughtily.

"Guidance she will not receive from you." Kurenai stated matter-of-factly, "She does not trust you…or anyone here save a few…and the few she _does_ trust cannot go to her for fear of risking exposing her, Neji, and Hinata."

"What of Kenzo-heika's family?" a different elder inquired, "She trusted them. They pretty much raised her."

"The Ryouma family has been off the grid for decades. Ever since Yukiko married Yoko and banned them from the territory they have been near impossible to find. They're a band of nomadic gypsies for crying out loud. Finding them is next to impossible." Yet another elder stated irritably; this was not the first time finding the family had come up.

"Next to impossible but not _totally_ impossible." Kakashi stated as he stared down the one that had spoken, his mismatched eyes causing a visible unease in the person, "It will take time but I am sure I can track them down."

"Misora should be filled with ecstasy at the thought of overthrowing Yukiko." Aya stated sharply, the two having had a rivalry that spanned near a millennium, although it was mostly one sided on Aya's side.

"Now is not the time for your petty rivalry." Hiashi ordered and Aya nodded in submission, "Kakashi, do what you can to find them as fast as possible and put them on the search for Zukiyo-hime."

"How do you know they'll want anything to do with this?" someone asked.

"They are family to Zukiyo-hime. Of course they'll want to." Another answered.

"They're Yukiko's family as well."

"No. They're not." Kakashi answered, "They are related by blood but they aren't family. Yukiko has never treated them as family and in return they don't acknowledge her as family either. Neji and Hinata are more like family to them than Yukiko is."

The co-conspirators nodded in agreement and the discussion moved onto more mundane and technical matters. While contributing his input when needed Hiashi couldn't help but continue to hope that where ever they had taken Zukiyo that it was someplace safe; someplace with no serious threats to her welfare; someplace with people that were willing to help them conceal her; someplace…someplace Zukiyo could live safely with no one for her to provoke because as much as Hiashi respected her he couldn't deny one thing: Zukiyo loved nothing more than to play head games.

_Maybe that's what hell is. You go mad, and all your demons come and get you just as fast as you can think them up. ~ Anne Rice_

_For too long we have swept the problems of mental illness under the carpet... and hoped that they would go away.__Richard J. Codey_

**A/N: Shorter update than last but it's a needed stopping point. I promise the next chapter will be back with our favorite red headed one and princess. 'Til then feel free to review or message with any questions or comments.**


	7. Chapter 7: Hunting and Prey

**A/N: This is going to be my last update for awhile. So...read, review, and send me some love. Ahem…anyway…back with Gaara, Zukiyo, Neji, and our other favorites. R&R and enjoy.**

Chapter 7:Hunting and Prey

"Oh Neeeejjjjiiii…" a sing song and rather playful princess's voice called out over the street as Gaara stared down the Hyuga male.

"_No…she has no titles."_

That's what the Hyuga _said_, yes, but was he telling the truth? Before Gaara could decide this however his quarry walked up with the scent of a fresh kill on her and it was intoxicating. The crimson haired male glanced at this new female while crossing his arms over his chest.

She walked up to them steadily, dressed in a red, nearly off the shoulder, long sleeved shirt with black lace trimming the collar along with a black and red corset of some kind over the lower half of it. Along with that she had on black pants and a pair of heeled boots…as well as a simple yet very concealing black ribbon choker with a red jewel of some kind in the middle. Over all of this she wore a simple long black coat to fight off the evening's chill. Her hair was pulled back in a loose and low ponytail as she assumed an imitation of Gaara's stance once she stopped. Her pose didn't help her seem authoritative or imposing at all. No instead, with the way she was standing with her one knee slightly bent like it was, it only helped to emphasize her figure in a way that Gaara was currently debating whether or not it was intentional. Unbeknownst to him Neji was currently wondering the same exact thing.

"_Is she…yes…yes she is. She's doing it on purpose. That means she knows._" Neji realized and internally sighed, "_She really has to learn that there are things you just don't _do_…and playing with Gaara's mind…is _definitely_ one of those things you just don't do._"

"I need to borrow Neji." Zukiyo stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"What did you do now, Zu?" Neji asked, his automatic response when she called his name out like she had.

"I am deeply and…tragically offended, Neji-kun. What…Why would you think I did anything?" she asked in a rather over dramatic and over the top way that was actually quite amusing to the red headed observant.

"Because…that tone of voice always…_always_ means you've done something or another." Neji stated rationally even as Zukiyo put on a mock look of anger that he'd suggest such a thing, "So what did you do?"

"I fed and am not mental anymore." She stated and smiled at Neji who sighed and pointed at her.

"Stay here and don't run off, Zu. I will be right back." He stated and looked at Gaara as if considering something then walked off in the direction that Zukiyo had just come from.

Gaara watched as Zukiyo watched him go and noticed something very clear in her eyes…and it was not what he expected. It was mischief. Pure and simple wicked mischief as they looked out at the world with that smile still shining in them.

"Nah…I won't do it…yet," she stated and sat down on a bench and crossed her legs all in one incredibly fluid movement that Gaara realized rather amazed him.

He had to admit something as he studied her again: She looked damn good in red. Another thing he was forced to admit at that time was that Zukiyo was absolutely unpredictable as the next thing he knew she was sitting on the bench upside down, meaning with her back on the seat and her legs over the back, staring up at the sky humming some tune while she kicked her feet idly. Gaara also realized that she was ignoring him. This did not please him in the least.

"What did I tell you about staring?" she stated, the very moment he was about to make some biting comment about her letting her guard down so easily it so happened, and looked at him with her light grey eyes smiling up at him, inviting him to answer.

"It's rude." He replied as he leaned against a building casually.

"You _can_ be taught then…that's good news." She stated with a serious look on her face that annoyed him enough to growl at her a bit which only made her smirk slightly.

This of course caused him to stop the growl in confusion. Unpredictable and slightly insane it seemed.

"So what brings you out into the city tonight…Gaara?" she asked casually, as if he had never growled at her comment at all, and waited for an answer.

"Hunting."

"Uh…huh…so leaning against a building is your method of finding and stalking prey?" she asked raising her eyebrows and he smirked.

"Maybe it is…" he said with a look that implied she was possibly the prey.

"I don't think so, Gaara-_sama_. I'm not featured in this city's menu…or _any_ menu." She stated seriously with a slight pointed edge to it and he looked at her levelly.

"I don't think you could stop me." The red haired one said, hinting at the difference in their power levels.

"I could always try." Zukiyo responded and she saw a questioning look hidden in his eyes for a brief second that she wasn't about to answer.

Zukiyo knew she couldn't stop him but she wasn't about to let him push her around just because he was more powerful. She'd fight him tooth and nail if she had to. Living in fear of one person her whole life was more than enough…she would not live in fear of two.

Gaara was amused by her. He didn't hide that either as he looked back at her. He wasn't sure if he believed Neji or not when he said she had no titles, but there had to be some reason Naruto was practically pushing her at him. Gaara knew this and he knew, now more than ever, that the only way he'd find out what it was that made Naruto push her at him he'd have to actually spend time with her. He mentally cursed the Kyuubi's manipulative genius in this. Naruto was no Nara clan member true, but when it came to manipulating people and getting certain responses there were few in the world that matched his skill. That damned Kyuubi knew, he _knew_ that Gaara would want to know more about this woman, and he knew that no one would give Gaara any answers which would lead the red head to being forced to spend time with her.

Damn him. It wasn't as if the red head didn't have _other_ things to do. In fact he had plenty. Gaara had a very large territory to maintain. That meant making sure everyone knew and remembered that. Other vampires lived in this city yes, but they all knew and remembered _who_ the city belonged to and acted accordingly…or else they had to deal with _him_. On top of that he also had a certain newly elected mayor to… congratulate. It was imperative that the new mayor understood a few things…like where or where not to poke his nose. Taking care of that, as well as many other things, meant Gaara did not have all the free time in the world to spend devoted to spending time with this woman. Yet, he was going to have to make time because he had to find out what was so special about her…he _needed_ to find out.

"You could try…" he chuckled slightly, a dark, twisted chuckle, "I'd test that if I was in the mood. Luckily for you I'm not."

"Oh how lucky for poor, little, defenseless Zukiyo." She pouted sarcastically in return, "What will I ever do? My whole life is dependant on whether or not you're in The Mood."

He flattened his gaze at her, not quite sure what to make of that other than to roll his eyes, which is exactly what he did. However he noticed that her attention had already moved onto something else. Gaara was starting to get annoyed by her lack of an attention span until he noticed that she was mostly just doing it to annoy him.

"_Well…two can play at that game._" He thought; however he still had to find out what annoyed her before he could use it against her…which of course required him to spend time with her.

"If you're out tonight to hunt…shouldn't you get to doing that?" the woman suddenly asked him while examining her nails in a bored manner.

"I did already."

"Very good." She stated and he rolled his eyes, "So…if you're done hunting tonight…why are you still here?"

"I never said I was _done_."

"Then go finish…or…are you afraid to leave me here all by myself?" she asked teasingly.

"Why would I be afraid of that?" he asked and she sat herself back up and smiled at him.

"A number of reasons," Zu stated vaguely which Gaara had to admit was slightly amusing.

"You're not going to tell me what those reasons are so I'm not going to ask."

"Good idea." She stated in serious manner as she crossed her legs and folded her hands on her lap; she was starting to feel restless.

Kamitsuyo Zukiyo never could abide sitting still for insanely long periods of time yet for the past two weeks or so that's all she had done. Two weeks locked in a claustrophobia inducing cell not even big enough to pace in had immediately turned into sitting in the back of a car or in a cramped little plane for who knows how long. She needed to move around more. However, Neji had told her to stay put…then again that had never stopped her before. So…what _was_ stopping her?

"_I'll get lost if I just go and wander around._" She realized and considered her options while Gaara watched her, "_I could go help Neji get done faster…no, he won't let me help he never does. That leaves me with waiting here but he's taking so long. If I only had a phone I could try to call Hina, but even if I asked Mr. I'm-Trying-To-Be-Scary to borrow his, waiting for her to get here would honestly take just as long as waiting for Neji to get done. This…_bites_…_"

Gaara watched her silently and decided that now was the first opportunity he'd been given to get her away from the Hyuga so he had better make the best of it.

"If you're feeling restless why not go?" he asked and she looked at him flatly.

"In case it hasn't dawned upon you yet: I've never been here before. I'll get lost." She stated and he shook his head, "What?"

"Come." He stated simply, not a command or an order, more a suggestion than anything else.

Zu was aware that this was simply a ploy at getting her to open up to him so he could satisfy his curiosity. She knew that just as well as she knew that she shouldn't go with him…but she wanted to. That in itself slightly confused her and yet didn't. It didn't because Zu hated staying still for long periods of time and going with him would give her the opportunity of moving around and hopefully learning her way around the city more. It surprised her though that she wanted to go with _him_.

It surprised her but not for very long as Zu quickly realized that she wanted to go with him because she found him attractive. It was the hair color…she loved red and yet…maybe it was the eyes. They were different from any other's she had seen before with their black rings. Whatever it was she was attracted to it and was curious about it enough to agree to go with him into the city. This of course prompted him to ask about Neji.

"Oh him? He'll be fine." She waved it off as if it was nothing, "He'll probably have a hissy fit about me going off with you but he'll get over it eventually."

As much as this contradicted what Gaara initially believed about her and Neji's relationship he was not about to stand there and interrogate her about it right this instant for a few reasons. One was simply that he wanted to get her out of the area and therefore out of the Hyuga's immediate grasp. Gaara knew that the key to him finding out what he wanted about this woman was to get as much one on one time with her as possible. Another reason was that it would come off as too forward a question and that lead to the last reason. He had a feeling that she probably wouldn't give him a straightforward answer even if he begged…which he would never do.

"We'll see about that." He stated a bit amusedly, he was not too sure Neji would get over it at all.

"Yes we shall." She stated as she dug through the glove compartment of the car she and Neji arrived in.

"What are you looking for?"

"Well, if you _must_ know I'm looking for Neji's wallet." She said and saw the confusion on Gaara's face, "His _real_ wallet. The one he probably keeps his money in."

"Why?"

"Um…I'm a fugitive from the ruling clan of all vampires. I don't exactly have any money of my own at this very moment. Unless Neji did something like set up another bank account for me with a different set of names on it than my old one which with today's laws and hindrances is practically impossible for him to do without me so I doubt he did that. Therefore..."

"You're stealing his money." Gaara stated slightly amused once again, then almost outright laughed at her next remark.

"I'm not stealing it." She stated counting out some money after finding the wallet, "I'm _borrowing_ it."

"What the fuck?" Neji cursed when he returned to find not only Zu and Gaara gone but also 400 dollars from his wallet, "I swear I'm handcuffing her to the car door next time I leave her alone."

"Wow." A voice stated that Neji recognized as belonging to the middle Sabaku sibling, Kankuro, "Who would have thought Hyuga Neji was into handcuffs and bondage. That…wow…"

Neji glared at Kankuro for a moment, not really in the mood for dealing with him at that moment; especially when Zukiyo was out in the city with the most dangerous vampire on this half of the planet. He should have figured she'd do something like this. It wasn't the first time and it most likely wouldn't be the last. Right now though he had to consider what to do and first he had to deal with Kankuro.

"Kankuro…keep your perversions to yourself. Your little brother is currently out doing who knows _what_ with the person I'm in charge of protecting and keeping alive."

"And…." Kankuro started, obviously not seeing anything wrong with this, "Neji, calm down. Gaara isn't going to kill her. If he was going to kill her…he would have done it already. If he was going to kill her he wouldn't have bothered to take her off somewhere to do it. He'd just kill her right here first chance he had. So relax."

"Relaxing isn't my thing." Neji stated before going to look for Zukiyo then thinking better of it since he knew he'd never find her in this city and he sighed, "Shit."

"Man, relax. Listen, I'm headed to work, paperwork and management shit, why not just come along, sit down, and relax?"

"Fine, whatever." He relented, realizing that doing anything else was really useless, and hoped to any god there was that Zukiyo did not do something that would get her killed.

"I do not have to tell you that." Gaara's companion replied to a question he had asked.

To him it was a simple question that did not come off as too inquisitive or intruding. To Zukiyo, however, it was. This had been the basis of most of their conversation. He'd ask a question and she'd either outright refuse to answer it or she'd give the vaguest answer she could. It was frustrating. Obviously he was going to have to try a different approach to this. It would be so much easier if she was scared of him. However, much to Gaara's slight amazement, she wasn't. She had no fear of him and he really could not understand why. _Everyone_ was afraid of him outside those that resided at Naruto's Estate yet this newcomer was not. It perplexed him and made him even more curious about her…and more determined to get answers from her as well.

"Very well then…where would you like to go? If you're going to be stubborn about going places that _I_ want to or need to go how about _you_ choose?" he asked, forced to actually concede to what she wanted.

"Well…I need a phone. Preferably one that Neji does not buy me since I suspect he might try to put some homing device on it or something, " she stated waving her hand dismissively.

"Why in hell would he do that?" Gaara asked sincerely perplexed at such paranoia.

"Well…to be honest he likes to keep tabs on me. I have a small tendency to cause chaos where ever I go and he's the one that usually has to clean it up. Much to his chagrin." She stated honestly and the red head couldn't help but crack a very, _very_ small smile at that.

"You do seem to like to annoy him."

"It's what I do. Now, are you going to take me somewhere I can get a phone or are you going to stand there all imposing vampire lord in the middle of a back alley with me until Neji inevitably comes and scolds me for being bad and leaving?" she asked with her hands on her hips and he couldn't help but raise and eyebrow which only made her stare at him, "Why don't you have eyebrows?"

He blinked at her. He had never been asked that particular question and had never really given it any thought. As such he simply shrugged. Amazingly she accepted that as an answer and he escorted her to a place she could get a phone. As she was dealing with the sales clerks Gaara's own phone rang; it was his brother.

"What?"

"I'm assuming you have our new guest with you." Kankuro stated music in the background that told Gaara that his brother was calling from his office.

"Yes. Why?"

"Curiosity mostly; that and the Hyuga is here glaring at his drink like he lost a million dollar bet or something. He's worried you're going to go psycho on her."

"Why would I do that?" Gaara asked as he watched the female negotiate with the clerk about phone plans and contracts much like he would watch his prey.

"Because you are you and she's a challenge and you love challenges. That's why. Now, as your older and more experienced brother I'm going to give you some advice…" his brother started which sent up little warning flags in Gaara's mind.

"If this is anything like the last advice you gave me just shut up now or I'll kill you."

"Someone is hostile today…but no, it's not like that. My advice is to simply get to know her before you decide to kill her. Who knows she might not be that bad. Besides it's fun to watch Neji get all upset when she does stuff he doesn't like, which I get the impression that she does that a lot." Kankuro reasoned and Gaara couldn't help but agree slightly that it was always entertaining to see Neji blow up at things as he was usually so calm and collected all the time.

"I've been trying to get to know her…she's making it very difficult." The red head admitted and his brother chuckled.

"That because you probably haven't been asking the right questions and have been trying too hard. She's probably not going to tell you anything if you just come out and ask. What have you found out so far?"

"Her name is Kamitsuyo Zukiyo, she likes red, she likes cats better than most dogs, she doesn't like mannequins for some reason, she talks a lot and very quickly most of the time, she's very good at avoiding incriminating answers, and she finds annoying Neji somewhat amusing. She is also apparently skilled in negotiating as the salesman at the cell phone kiosk doesn't seem too pleased with whatever she talked him into offering." Gaara reported dryly, annoyed with his lack of useful information.

"Well…it's a start. Just keep trying and…try to be pleasant and nice."

"Hn." Gaara replied…this was going to be the start of a very long process…or maybe not he thought as he watched her walk up and smile at him invitingly before speaking through her teeth low so only their kind could pick it up.

"Act like you're happy to see me or something since I just had to refuse that guy five times when he offered a lower price on the phone plan if I'd go out with him." She stated and he decided that he'd help her out, just this one time, and held a hand out to her which she accepted.

"All done, princess?" he asked as pleasantly as he could muster, which wasn't as difficult as one would think, and lightly kissed the back of her hand before winding her arm in his and noticed she twitched ever so slightly at being called princess and he had a thought, "_Hmm…I think I've found a nerve….maybe this won't be so hard after all._"

He hid his smirk at that thought as they walked away from the kiosk. Zukiyo, also hid something as she leaned against him to keep their ruse up until out of sight, she hid the fact that his calling her princess bothered her more than he thought. She knew it was a common endearment for men to use, but she hated it and she knew that she couldn't let this male find out that she really _was_ one. Not yet at least. Keeping herself out of harms way was going to be much harder than she thought.

**A/N: Here's the update, I'm going away for awhile so I don't know when I'll be back. I'll miss you all send me lots of feedback and love!**


	8. Chapter 8: Misconceptions

**A/N: Yes an update! I'm at my friend's house and she has internet so I figured I'd post a new chapter of Just a Taste for all of you that miss me so much. I don't have internet of my own yet BUT I did get a new laptop and it is not demonically possessed like my old one so YAY! Anywho…R&R I love encouragement and feedback. Also: I do not own Naruto or the Naruto characters however the plot, the original characters, and the various histories of said characters are all mine unless otherwise stated so…no taking without permission or…bad things will happen to you.**

Chapter 8: Misconceptions

"What are you doing with my phone?" Zukiyo asked her red haired male companion after he took it from her and started typing into it.

He didn't answer. Gaara just continued what he was doing until she tried to take it back then held it out of her reach. It was an easy feat since he was taller than she was and an amusing one as well. The male watched out of the corner of his eye as his companion futilely reached for it while he typed into it for another minute or so.

It was just as she was about to lose her temper and punch him that he pulled his own phone out and looked at it before typing into hers again and she understood what he was doing. He was putting numbers into her phone. Probably Naruto's, his siblings', as well as Neji and Hinata's new numbers, and his own most likely.

"_Yep_." She thought as he sent himself a message from her phone.

"How do you spell your name?" He asked and refused the urge to just put Princess in as her name.

"Z. U. K. I. Y. O. How else would I spell it?" she snapped at him as if she could tell what he was thinking and he glanced at her out of the corner of his eye at her.

"I don't know. That's the point of asking." He stated and she rolled her eyes at him before he finished entering her into his contacts and handed back her phone, "Try not to call me unless you desperately need something."

"Desperately need…hmm…I suppose I can handle that." Zu stated and they walked out of the mall, "So…where now?"

Gaara looked at her and considered the answer. He decided it would be best to show her around the city a bit some other time since it would take awhile to do. As such he opted to take her to where Neji was. The red head figured that it would be a wise decision to show the Hyuga that Zukiyo was safe in Gaara's hands.

"_For now._" He thought and nodded at the door to Zukiyo, "Come. It would probably be best to get you back to Neji before he thinks I murdered you."

"Murder me?" she started as she walked alongside him and smiled playfully at him, "Why would you do that? I haven't done anything to provoke you…yet. "

He chuckled as he held the door open for her. She was interesting, yes she was, and, although he didn't want to admit it, he was looking forward to getting to know more about this woman. However that would have to wait until he concluded his business tonight.

"So, just to satisfy my own curiosity, what is it _you_ do?" she asked him at one point as they walked and he looked at her not quite sure he understood the question, "Your brother runs clubs, I think Neji mentioned something about your sister running something or another…a restaurant or theatre. Naruto…seems much too eccentric to actually do much of anything other than be him…"

"I manage our territory." He stated, slightly amused in her summation of Naruto which was dead on actually.

"That's it?" she asked looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. It does take up a good amount of time. After returning you to your keeper I must attend to something." He said and she nodded.

"I'm guessing that would be the new mayor." She stated and Gaara looked at her wondering how she had guessed that, "I saw the headlines on one of the newspapers from today about who won the mayoral election and such."

The red head nodded as they walked on before he started thinking about how his night would have to go and realized a bit of a problem. It wasn't too much of a problem, just a bit of a minor setback. To drop off Zukiyo at where Neji was on the East Side it would take him out of his way to get to the mayor's office in the North Side. He checked his watch briefly and mentally cursed. The new mayor would have gone home by the time he got there regardless of what he did with Zukiyo. Unknown to Gaara his female companion noticed this so she spoke.

"If you're still intent on speaking to the mayor tonight you might want to consider paying said person a visit at home." Zu stated quite casually and he looked at her questioningly, "A home is where everyone is supposed to feel safe and feel invincible. If you show that you can get into their house without anyone noticing you will have disrupted that illusion of invincibility and should have an easier time…convincing them of the true nature of the world so to speak."

The redhead paused a moment in consideration of her words and found that he agreed with her on most points except for one.

"The only problem with that is if I break into the mayor's home there is the slight chance-" he started but she cut him off already knowing what he was going to say.

"I know the new mayor is a woman and might think you're going to do something unspeakable to her but still doing this in her home is still better than the office…especially since she's a woman," Zu stated then elaborated when Gaara's stare prompted her to, "Her home is her haven…where her husband comes to her and loves her…where her children laugh and play…where she is safe and warm from that primal fear all humans have of the dark and unknown. Bring a little darkness into her little haven of light and I promise you that you will have put a deep seeded fear into her fragile, little, human heart."

"That would be a cruel thing to do to her. She'll never feel safe in her own home again." Gaara stated then smirked at Zukiyo, "I think we're going to get along just fine…Princess."

"We will indeed." Zu stated and patted his cheek, "As long as you stop calling me Princess…Gaara-_sama_."

He chuckled a bit before they went to see the task done, since Zukiyo invited herself to go with him, all the while thinking that maybe this female wasn't as soft hearted as he originally supposed.

Half an hour later Marian St. Clair walked to her home office after making sure that her daughter had gone to bed on time. Her husband, John, had already gone to bed as he was sick with a head cold. At least he said it was only a head cold but Marian knew very well that John always played down illnesses and was probably sick with the flu or some such thing. All this and more played through her mind that so when she walked out of her and her husband's bedroom she didn't notice the strange scent in his tea or that something was off about the way her chair was positioned when she walked into her office and shut the door. That is…she didn't notice until she flipped on the light and found herself staring right into two jade eyes rimmed heavily in black and jumped a bit.

"Who are you and what are you doing in my home?" she asked urgently yet quietly as to not wake her children.

"Sabaku no Gaara." He stated and she raised an eyebrow.

Sabaku no Gaara was a well-known name in the city. The Sabaku name itself was well-known; as well as the name it was frequently tied to: Uzumaki. It was common knowledge that the two families had been closely tied together since the founding of the city. The whole group was very influential and invested in many of the restoration projects for the city. It could be said that they helped build this city. Other than that very little was known about them as they kept to themselves most of the time, however from her brief inspection of this man he did have the reported family features: bright red hair, strange eyes, tall, and the love of red.

"Which one are you? The forth…fifth…whatever. There was a Sabaku no Gaara that lived in the city when I was a child and one when my father was a child and so on. Whatever, it doesn't matter. What are you doing in my house?" she asked again, unaware of another presence in the room.

"I'm here on business…so to speak." He stated seriously and yet something about the way he said it set something off in Marian's mind and she vaguely recalled the conversation she had with the departing mayor before he left…

_Two Days Ago_

"_Well Marian it was a good race right until the end. I can't say I envy you though." Jack had stated, his tie loosened and suit coat unbuttoned making him look a little disheveled, "Heh…you laugh now."_

_Marian had laughed lightly at that comment knowing all too well that she had a lot of work ahead of her. Then again she didn't enter the mayoral race for glory. She entered it to work. As she was about to tell Jack that she noticed for the first time how tired the man looked._

_Grey peppered the older man's dark hair; something she had never noticed before in truth and it surprised her. Jack was older than her but not old enough in her opinion to have that much grey hair…or that many wrinkles. He looked worn and tired. She could only guess that it was the stress from the job and his home life._

"_You laugh now. This job isn't easy and things aren't what they seem." He stated cryptically next._

"_What are you talking about Jack? I know the position isn't all buttercups and sunflowers." Marian stated smiling until he spoke next._

"_No…no it's not. Buttercups and sunflowers exist in the light…and some of the business you'll have to deal with on this job doesn't exist in the light." He said and pulled on his overcoat and scarf as she frowned at him, "You'll find out soon enough…in a couple of days probably. That's when I did. My advice for you…keep an open mind towards everything. We humans have such little minds sometimes that we immediately discredit something just because we believe it to be impossible. Well…impossible things happen every day. I'll be seeing you." _

With that he had put his hat on and left and she couldn't help but wonder at his words. Now she couldn't help but think that this… "visit" had something to do with that…and she was afraid.

"I'm not going to hurt you…as long as we get along nicely so you don't need to be afraid." The man named Gaara stated and this did nothing to help calm her and somehow she had the idea that he knew that.

"What…what do you mean business?" she asked nervously, "What…what kind of business?"

"Mine." he stated and somehow when the light of a car passing by outside caught his eyes they reflected…like an animals and she knew that something was wrong with this man.

"What…what's wrong with you?" she asked backing up away from this red haired man with such strange eyes and remembered that he had said he was the original Sabaku no Gaara which was impossible unless…that couldn't be, "What…what _are_ you?"

"Well I do have to give it to you…you caught on much faster than Jack and his predecessor did." Gaara chuckled then stated as he walked closer to her and Marian saw something she had to look twice at: He had fangs, "Running won't get you anywhere."

She didn't care as she turned and ran for her children's bedroom. Marian had never believed her grandmother when the old woman warned her of vampires. Her grandmother had been close to ninety when she died and held onto the belief that vampires roamed the city and lived amongst everyone like normal people. Being a child Marian ate up her stories like every grandchild did but she had never given them any credence. As a teenager she openly laughed when the old woman told her to be home before dark lest the vampires get her. Now…Marian's mind raced with everything the woman had said of them as she raced to get to her children.

"But…but why did da gispy do dat?" she heard her youngest daughter ask just as Marian stopped dead in her tracks in the doorway.

Sitting in the chair next to her little girl's bed was a woman. Dark haired, fair skinned, silver eyed, and…wrong the woman sat there dressed in red and black with Marian's little girl on her lap as if it were story time. The mother's heart sank into her stomach and made it roil. The woman's eyes caught Marian's for a brief second, catching the light of the hallway as they did, before she spoke to the little girl.

"Because the little girl's mother didn't listen to the gypsy's friend. You remember. The mother wanted very badly to be able to provide for her family after her husband took sick…"

"Oh yeah! Dat was da pwice! Dat the mommy help the gispy's fwiend take care of hif family wif…wif…" her daughter stated and tried to remember something from the story apparently, " 'Wif her newfound wealf,' or the liddle girl would hafta live wif the gispy and her fwiend. Dat's why dey took the liddle girl away huh?"

"You are exactly right, sweetheart." the woman stated as she affectionately smoothed the little girl's hair back.

Marian's heart sank even more as she heard that. Something in her heart told her that it wasn't just a story; it was a warning. Covering her mouth with her hand as she shook her head at the thought of her daughter being taken away she backed up slowly as she felt the terror well up inside her even more.

"Da lady shoulda helped da gispy's fwiend and liffened to da gispy and not been so toopid n' greedy." Her daughter stated and the woman nodded.

"I think so too. You know…you are a very smart little girl."

"I'm not liddle. I'm four n' a haf years owd on Friday." Her daughter protested and the woman nodded humoring the girl as Marian backed up down the hall with the intent to wake her husband for help.

"You are so right…you're not a little girl. You're a big girl. Still…it's time for you to get some sleep…"

Opening the door to her bedroom Marian ran over to her sleeping husband and tried desperately to wake him. Yet no matter how much she shook him he wouldn't stir. He was out cold.

"John! Wake up! Wake up! They have Sarah! Wake up!" she urged but he wouldn't and she finally noticed that something didn't smell right with his tea cup and there was an extra spoon.

Terrified she ran for her husband's office, intending on locking it, and was met yet again by those two black rimmed eyes under a head of blood red hair. Before she could run out the woman pulled the door shut as she entered and locked it. As the door shut out the light from the hallway the room darkened. She stared at the door and watched the darkness engulf the room until all that was left in the room was Marian, two vampires, and the darkness that consumed them.

"Zu…what were you thinking?" Neji scolded the exiled princess once she had returned home where he was waiting and he escorted her back to her rooms.

"That I'd get a phone, see some of the city, and make friends." She stated as she tossed her coat on the back of a chair.

"With _Gaara_?"

"Yes. With him." She replied and plopped down on the couch to lounge as she flipped the TV on.

"Are you insane?" her constant protector asked as he watched her sit there like this was no big deal.

"A little, but _that_ has been established already. Oh Neji…calm down. Your paranoia is showing. Gaara is a moody, antisocial bastard but he's not that bad once you get used to him. I will be fine around him…I'm a big girl and I can handle myself." She stated and smiled at him reassuringly.

"Zuzu…just be careful around him. Please. For me." He stated, knowing all too well that she wouldn't stay away from the dangerous pureblood even if he begged her to, and watched her go down the hall somewhere.

"I'm telling you, Kankuro, you're all playing with fire." Temari stated to her little brother after he got home from work, "Even if, by some miracle, Gaara does not-"

"He's not going to use her, Tem. You _know_ him. He wouldn't do that. As for killing her…trust me, he's not going to get to doing that." Kankuro stated to his older sister casually.

"How do you know that?" she asked, "If he wants to kill her he'll just do it."

"Exactly." Her little brother replied with a smile on his face and she understood.

"He hasn't killed her yet. She's an obvious threat but he hasn't killed her yet." Temari stated, realization having finally dawned upon her, "All logic states he would have just eliminated such a large threat to his own existence by now…or would have tried to."

"Yep."

"What…why hasn't he?" she asked.

"Curiosity." Kankuro stated smiling almost wickedly, "He's curious…he wants to know what about her makes Naruto, since he hasn't figured out that I'm involved in this too yet, makes Naruto think that Zukiyo is 'worthy' of Gaara's attention. He's too curious about her to kill her. He's probably going to find out more about her before he decides whether or not to eliminate her…and by the time he finds out what he wants he's going to want a whole new set of things."

"How are you so sure of this, Kankuro?" Temari asked, sincerely confused at her brother's confidence and he looked at her.

"He allowed her to go with him when he dealt with the new mayor." Kankuro stated and Temari looked at him shocked; Gaara usually did such things on his own, "And I hear it went even better than usual. According to my own contacts in the city they actually went to her house to pay a visit after our new friend suggested it to Gaara. The two of them practically had the mayor bowing and scraping to their every whim in no time. They were in and out in a matter of two hours."

"That's it? Even if Gaara scares them half to death it never goes that fast…three hours was the quickest it's ever been. How…"

"I don't know. I'm not too curious about that though. However it happened it still got done quickly and that leads to an easier time running our territory, which will give our dear little brother more time to spend with one Kamitsuyo Zukiyo."

"Kankuro…you have no way of knowing that is what he'll do with his spare time." Temari stated and once again her brother gave her that slightly amused look before speaking.

"Gaara may be an antisocial, moody bastard…but he's still a man. He still has desires, wants, lusts, you name it…and that woman embodies all of them. He just doesn't realize that yet. On top of that…you're forgetting about what she will do…and I have a feeling that he couldn't ignore her or avoid her even if he wanted to."

Some hours later Gaara found himself sitting in an armchair staring out the window in his room. The sun was setting slowly and bathing the estate grounds in Naruto's favorite shade of orange. His new neighbor had once again woken up screaming from some nightmare and of course the Hyuga was there in an instant. Even if he felt like trying to help her Gaara had the feeling that her personal guard wouldn't let him. So, unable to sleep, he sat in the dark brown armchair in his sitting room staring out the windows of the balcony thinking about what had happened with the mayor.

Gaara had to admit that his night had gone a lot smoother than he anticipated. It had actually been rather fun. Then again he had always found striking fear into others amusing. Still, Zukiyo had made it interesting to say the least. She was quite a little bundle of surprises…interesting surprises and cruel ones as well. In his opinion that only made her more interesting…and that only made him want to know about her even more. On their way back to the estate Gaara had learned a few things about his new companion. He wasn't expecting it but she did volunteer some information, nothing major to be sure, but it was at least something. What surprised him the most was how…he didn't know how to describe it.

They had gained access into the mayor's house easily enough which wasn't surprising but what was surprising was how quickly Zukiyo went to work. Within minutes she had drugged the husband's tea so that he would sleep straight through the "meeting" regardless of how loud it got.

"_It helps that my mother ran an apothecary for a number of years among other things. She was very knowledgeable about herbs and plants and what effects that had if they were consumed or what have you. It was almost as if she liked plants more than she liked people._" Zukiyo had stated when he actually praised her quick thinking with the husband's tea.

As for the child and how she handled that she had something to say as well. Gaara himself wasn't expecting her to do that. Threatening a mother with her child's wellbeing was something he did not expect for Zu to have in her.

"_She was terrified you were going to kill the girl._" He had stated at one point.

"_I may be cruel but I do have my limits. I wasn't going to hurt the girl. With me there is an age limit...most of the time. At any rate I wouldn't have seriously done anything to the girl. That would have upset the maternal instincts I was born with._"

"_Her mother did not know that though._"

"_Exactly._" Was her only reply before smirking a bit twistedly and he couldn't stop himself from smirking in amusement.

Already this woman had proven that he was wrong about her on a number of fronts. As such it made him wonder about what else he could be wrong about. He wasn't going to find out everything right away at any rate. All Gaara could really do was bide his time and be patient. However, patience had never really been one of his strengths. In the meantime he would play nice…in his own way at least.

The next night, as everyone sat in the breakfast room waking up still Gaara watched Naruto walk in talking on the phone with someone. This in itself wasn't odd. Naruto wasn't much for an actual career but he did deal with various matters of business. Gaara didn't know what that business was exactly, but it seriously wouldn't surprise him if it had something to do with ramen. What was odd about this phone call was the look of slight confusion on the Kyuubi's face. It was as if the demon wasn't exactly sure of why this person had called him to discuss whatever it was.

"Ok then. I'll be sure to tell them that." Naruto stated and hung up and looked at Gaara, "Mayor St. Clair wanted me to thank you for whatever you did to help her husband with her cold."

Gaara's head tilted instantly in confusion. He had done nothing of the sort. Then he remembered the tea and looked at Zukiyo who was sitting at the table across from him.

"I told you that it would knock him out. You assumed that's all it would do and didn't ask if it did anything else." She stated and sipped placidly from her glass of blood and in return received a questioning look from the jade eyed vampire across from her, "If you _must_ know why…it was because I figured it might help to make nice with her after the whole leading her to believe I'd take her daughter thing."

"Zu! You can't do that!" Neji scolded and she looked at him.

"I didn't actually _do_ it though now did I? No. I only threatened it. There's a difference. Relax." Zu stated in her own defense as Gaara watched Neji grumble, "Anyway, that's why I did it. Apparently…it worked."

"Apparently so." Gaara stated and drank from his own glass as he began to slowly reevaluate this female's usefulness.

A few weeks later found Gaara seeking out his new companion in the house. They had, much to Neji's disdain and somewhat Gaara's, fallen into a sort of routine. Everyday Gaara would be awakened to Zukiyo's screaming as she woke up from a nightmare, Neji would then go comfort her just as Gaara would poke his head in curiously and be glared at by the said Hyuga and then afterwards they would all manage to return to their room then fall back asleep until night fell and it was time to go out and hunt or attend to other matters when it wasn't necessary to hunt. Neji was usually the one that escorted Zukiyo into the city as Gaara went out to hunt by himself in his usual manner on those days before meeting up with Zukiyo somewhere while Neji dealt with whatever mess Zu had made that night and had their usual banter. After that, most of the time, she would stay with him while he went about his business managing the territory. Other nights, when they were not required to go and feed they'd still meet up at some point while Neji was distracted with something.

Gaara couldn't maintain his earlier belief that she made running the territory more difficult, she didn't. In fact Gaara found that when she accompanied him to do such things usually went along much more smoothly. More issues were solved without him having to kill someone to make his point. It wasn't the fastest way to deal with things but it was still easier. This all proved that their first meeting with the mayor and the speed in which that was resolved wasn't a fluke.

Tonight was going to be different however as a sudden cold front had brought the whole city to a standstill with a snowstorm that had even Naruto in a tizzy as he made sure that none of the pipes in the house burst. Snow had been falling steadily since the night before and had already accumulated about a foot of the accursed whiteness outside their residence and on the road as well…and it showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. In fact, according to the weather report he had just finished watching with his sister, the snow was supposed to continue through the night into the next day as well. Temari and he both agreed with the weatherman when said person called this the worst snow storm the area had seen in fifty years.

The residents of the Uzumaki Estate were going to be trapped inside the house for a few days it seemed as their road was always the last to see the flashing lights of the plow trucks as they made their way up the mountain clearing the road of snow. It would not surprise Gaara if he was forced to once again call the town and remind them that their road needed to be cleared of snow. However he was preoccupied with a different task still: finding Zukiyo to give her the news about the snow as well as another thing that he was rather happy with.

His quarry was not in her rooms so he set out to the next most likely spot: a small study to near the back of the 2nd floor of the west wing. Gaara figured that this was where he would find her since Zukiyo seemed to have taken a liking to this particular room for some reason and could usually be found in it when she wasn't found elsewhere.

The room itself was as most rooms in Naruto's house, large and spacious yet with a comfortable air. Gaara remembered that when first built this room had been an off white yellowish color with white boarders however it no longer was. Ever since Zukiyo had arrived and adopted the study as hers it had shifted to a dark warm red almost brown in color and the molding had changed from the white it was to a deep mahogany brown. All in all it gave the room a whole different feeling to it. Bookshelves lined the walls of the study, sparsely filled with books as this particular room was never really put to much use before Zu's arrival, as well as a few paintings of random scenes. A sturdy Victorian era desk with chair sat in the middle of the room facing the door. A few throw rugs lined the already carpeted floor as a couple of cushioned armchairs sat on top of them here and there. Two large bay windows filled the back wall, each with cushioned seats built into the walls beneath them so that one could sit and look out into the gardens beyond the glass, now tinted to protect the inhabitants inside from the sun's harmful rays after someone had put in the order to have that done after discovering Zukiyo's fondness for it. This was also exactly where Gaara found Zukiyo when he entered the room: sitting on the cushions with a light knitted grey blanket around her shoulders staring out the window at the snow as it fell, laying down an increasingly heavier blanket upon the ground.

Gaara examined her quickly as he spotted her, as it was the first time he'd seen her since waking. Her hair was down falling in loose curls around her shoulders as was normal for her. Also as normal she was wearing something to cover her neck, a wide red ribbon choker with black lace detail today as well as something else he noticed she wore frequently: a long gold chain that went down past the neckline of her shirt. It must have had something she held dear to her on the end for her to wear it so frequently. It was cold out so he wasn't too surprised to see his newest companion dressed in a blood colored sweater and heavy jeans and her usual heeled boots.

"There is something about snow that has always struck me as beautifully sad." Zu stated to him as he closed the door behind him to keep in the heat of the room as she continued to watch the snow fall slowly to the ground.

The male pureblood looked at her and couldn't help but notice that her eyes were the exact same shade the clouds overhead had been earlier that day when he had woken up and looked outside. As this thought crossed his mind he took a seat in one of the large armchairs nearest to her before she continued as she sensed the need for her to elaborate for him.

"It covers everything in a pristine blanket of pure white; giving the world an almost otherworldly wonderland quality to it and yet…it's so quiet. Everything is still, quiet, and empty. Even if you hear the laughter of children playing in the snow the air is still cold and empty. Sounds cut through the air but do not fill it…almost as if the snow is rejecting all forms of life so that it may remain as it is: frozen, barren, and pristine in its solitude." She finished and pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders as if she felt the very cold she had just spoken of, "What brings you to me though, Gaara? You do not usually seek me out when at home."

"Weather reports indicate the snow will not cease until late tomorrow afternoon if not later and a blizzard warning has been issued as well as a state of emergency for the area and all roads have been closed." Gaara stated and she nodded almost absently as she continued to stare out the window.

"Have Neji and Kankuro made it back?" she inquired still watching the snow fall; she was aware that Kankuro had asked the Hyuga to help him secure the last of his clubs against the wind and snow.

"No. Kankuro just called to tell me that he and Neji are both stuck there until the storm is over." Gaara replied, hiding a smirk at the news that for the next few days Zukiyo was essentially his as there was no Neji to run interference.

**A/N: Chapter 8…and next is Chapter 9…and that's almost done all I have to do is edit it. I just had to split the two in half or it would be way too long for my own personal tastes. Anywho…give me some feedback because you know I love it.**


	9. Chapter 9: Bonding

**A/N: Another nice long chapter for you. Not much to say, still updating from my friend's house…I don't own Naruto or the Naruto characters…plot is mine…yada yada, blahda blah, so on and so forth. Read, Review, and give me some feedback.**

Chapter 9: Bonding

"_Have Neji and Kankuro made it back?"_

"_No. Kankuro just called to tell me that he and Neji are both stuck there until the storm is over."_

Zukiyo looked away from the window at him. When she did Gaara noticed a slight worried cast to her eyes. As to who or what she was worried about he did not know but it was a change from the usual playful glint in her eyes he'd grown so accustomed to during these past few weeks.

It slightly amazed him that he had spent so much time with her but then again it was necessary if he was to get his answers. He had yet to discover anything truly useful about her past but he discovered new things about her personality daily. Kamitsuyo Zukiyo was nowhere near as simple as he had originally thought her to be. However she was predictable in that she was unpredictable; Gaara could always count on her to do something totally unexpected every night. Whether it was randomly disappearing on him while he was talking to her or randomly popping up out of nowhere while he was in the middle of something he could always count on her to do something to surprise him. Zukiyo seemed to specialize in surprising and playing with others and this amused him.

It couldn't be denied that he also found it amusing to see the other vampires in the city stare at her dumbfounded and shocked when he allowed her to accompany him places. In a way it pleased him; especially since he could tell that it was frustrating Zukiyo a tiny bit. Being seen with him constantly had essentially established her as his, and therefore untouchable and off limits, to the others of the city. Any time Gaara was around Zu all other males in the vicinity, as well as some females, gave Zu a wide berth as if it were fatal to make any kind of contact with her. This frustrated her a bit but Gaara found that when it did she would do one of two things depending on her mood: She would totally ignore him and go off on her own or she would give him her undivided attention. Either reaction amused him but he found he preferred her attention to her absence as it provided him with more opportunities to find out what he needed about her. This snowstorm had provided him with the biggest opportunity yet and he was not about to waste it even if it meant he would have to do things he normally wouldn't do.

"Are they going to be ok staying there during this?" Gaara heard her ask, snapping him out of his thoughts and he nodded.

"It's well stocked with blood and has emergency supplies." He answered and saw her nod before looking back out the window and speaking again.

"It's starting to fall faster now." She stated.

Gaara glanced out the window at the falling snow and saw the wind catch it. He watched the gust swirl the snow around violently as it often did the sand where he grew up and heard the echo of demonic laughter in the back of his mind as he sunk into memory…

_June 18, 1831_

"_Nice one kid," a voice behind him stated and chuckled, the sound coming from deep within the person's throat as Gaara turned to look behind him._

_The desert sand whipped around the man standing next to him, caught in the same gust that blew through the man's sand colored spikey hair. A smile curved upwards on the person's mouth, revealing a set of unnaturally elongated canines, towards two golden tinted eyes rimmed in the heavy black of all Ichibi Demons and their related kin. Tall as he was Gaara was still a runt in the eyes of this demon…his mentor of sorts._

"_You're late as usual Shukaku." Gaara stated to his newly arrived companion who only laughed; the sound of it dark, twisted, blood lusting, and filled with a strange amused mirth._

"_I'm not late…you started early." The demon stated and pointed at the clock tower in the distance, a good fifteen minutes behind Gaara's own pocket watch, "Your sister has to stop setting that thing fast or I'm not going to have anything to play with by the time I arrive to our appointments."_

"_Hn." Was the only response Gaara gave the golden eyed one as he went about cleaning the blood off his hands while watching the sand of the street drink up the little river of blood greedily as if it were a vampiric entity._

_Gaara's black rimmed jade eyes looked up from this as his keen nose caught the scent of yet another target farther down the street. It was a man feigning a limp as he "blindly" walked towards the pair, heavily scented with blood that did not match his own scent. The soft clink of metal barely echoed down the street with each step the human took._

"_Hunter…" Shukaku stated so low that only their supernatural hearing could pick it up, "Coated in blood so most likely a vampire hunter."_

_Gaara nodded before essentially telling his companion that this one was his if he wanted and watched as the demon smiled twistedly before he went and bathed the street in even more blood…_

"Gaara?" a voice he recognized as Zukiyo's called out to him and he snapped out of his memories and saw her standing in front of him, blanket still wrapped around her shoulders, leaning over and peering at him questioningly and…he could almost say worriedly.

"Hm?"

"You were in your own little world for a minute there. I mean, I'm trying to have a conversation with you here." She stated and smiled playfully at him with that playful glint back in her eyes making him shake his head at her as he chuckled softly, "What?"

"You never stop trying to have a conversation with me." He stated.

"Are you saying I never shut up?" She asked, narrowing her eyes at him and he looked at her flatly.

"Zu...you talk more than anyone I've ever met…you _know_ you never shut up." He stated and she laughed and nodded.

"True." She stated and, just to annoy him, plopped down to sit in his lap with her legs over the arm of the chair and her back against the armrest and his arm, "So, Mr. Brooding Silence of Doom…what is on today's agenda then since we are confined to the house? More interrogating me about…everything?"

Zukiyo couldn't help but be amused at the look on his face. It was an almost defeated look mixed with amusement hidden behind that ever present façade of irritated indifference. This wasn't the first time she had taken the liberty of sitting on his lap and it would not be the last. The first time she had done it however was very amusing as he openly gaped at her while sitting there frozen stiff at such close contact. The exiled princess very nearly burst out laughing at the look on his and everyone else's faces. Of course it didn't help that she had purposely worn a rather low cut shirt and corset that night along with that golden chain she had taken to wearing.

It was a normal enough gold chain with a small unremarkable pendant attached to it to weigh it down and pull it past the neckline of whatever she wore. The only reason she had started wearing it in the first place was to see how many times it took Gaara and every other male in the room to realize that in looking to see what was on the end of the chain they were openly staring at her chest. It was a small amusement for her but a fun one nonetheless. That and it kept Gaara from focusing on her neck and why she hid it.

It occurred to her that he could bite her at any time he wanted to yet at the same time she knew he wouldn't. Not yet at least. This knowledge was also the reason that she sat on his lap so often. Zukiyo knew very well that her scent appealed to this pureblood male she was sitting on. More than once she had caught the sight of his eyes glazing over with that predatory haze when he was confronted with her scent practically up in his face. As such she tortured him with it whenever she could, however there were certain drawbacks to this as well.

The main one being that she couldn't deny the fact that his own scent appealed to her as much as hers did to him. For one so used to taking what she wanted it was difficult to the point of near torture for her to be so close to him. In fact Zu was convinced that this was the sole reason Gaara let her sit on his lap at all. A simple act turned into a war of wills, a contest to see who could withstand the temptation longest before retreating. Zu won more often than not which irked her crimson haired companion to no end.

"Must you sit on me?" he asked her in an annoyed tone, although she could tell he was at least a little amused by her actions and she got comfy and blinked at him and smiled.

"You're comfy so yes." She stated then smirked at him playfully and pressed her nose against his, "You know you like it."

He leveled his gaze at her and just silently stared out at her flatly as he refrained from verbally replying to her. She smiled more and moved her face away from his obviously amused before being distracted by staring out the window at the snow again. Gaara's gaze then, as it usually did at moments like this when every breath he took was filled with her scent, travelled to her covered neck.

The male knew he could bite her any time he wanted without much worry of her being able to fight back. What stopped him from actually doing this was a number of things. Number one among them was the knowledge that if he did such he would never get any of the answers he was looking for from her. Still it was almost torture to have her that close to him and she knew that too. He knew that was the sole reason she sat on him like this: To torture him. Unfortunately for her he knew it wasn't a walk in the park for her either, which was why he let her sit there in the first place.

To distract himself from her ever present scent he took to doing what he normally would in this situation and studied her. Today it was the way she sat. Even while sitting on his lap in such a carefree manner there was still a sense of perfect posture in how she sat. Zukiyo was almost a contradiction to him. Neji had said she was a gypsy…and Zu herself had stated that once or twice. It was very obvious that she was once you spent enough time around her. She detested being inside for lengthy amounts of time and just her overall personality confirmed it. Zukiyo was a wild, free spirited, untamable creature. However there was that more serious side to her that made something tick in the back of his mind.

As wild as she was there was still a sense of nobility about her, especially when she was helping Gaara on his errands that were dedicated to the upkeep of the territory. It was noticeable in how she carried herself as well. Gaara of course knew she was a pureblood from the oldest pureblood clan on the planet but that didn't help him very much as most pureblood clans were broken into houses or branches.

The Kamitsuyo clan itself had a number of houses. The main one of course was the royal house where the queen descended from. There were the other houses that contained what one could refer to as the vampiric nobility as well and then there were the lesser houses that had no titles at all. Neji had stated that Zukiyo had no titles and that would mean she was from one of the lesser houses and yet…that didn't sit well with Gaara. Zukiyo was…more than that somehow. Then again he had never actually met anyone from the Kamitsuyo clan before her so he could be wrong and yet…he did not believe he was.

"I remember once when I was a little girl no more than 10 or so a terrible snow and ice storm hit the countryside around where I grew up." Zukiyo started saying as she stared out the window and Gaara gave her his full attention as she had never said anything like this before, "I remember hearing the wind howl through the trees loud enough to wake me up in the evening and I tiptoed over to the window barefoot. I remember that because the floors were so cold as the fire in the fireplace had gone out since no one save my parents really paid my needs much attention and they were away that night on business. Anyway, the window in my room was much like the ones in this room with the seats built in under them. I climbed up onto the seat and sat there wrapped in the blanket staring out the window as the snow and ice beat down outside. The wind was terrible and I swear I could see it make little dust devils out of the powdered snow that had just fallen. I sat and watched it an amazed kind of terror as the storm ripped through everything."

Gaara sat there and listened quietly to her as she spoke, more enraptured with the fact she was speaking of her childhood than hopeful she'd let something useful slip. It was a change from his usual motives but he couldn't deny that at times he noticed himself listening more to the sound of her voice than the actual words she was saying. It was a bad habit and he cursed himself for it but he couldn't really help it. Gaara had learned early on that Zukiyo talked a lot and would ramble on for periods about things. He didn't really need to talk back to her as long as he nodded every now and then which is what he usually did. As long as he did that she was perfectly happy just rambling on and on about whatever crossed her mind. He just blocked it out at first and nodded at intervals to keep her from getting angry with him but lately he'd been finding himself listening to her voice as she talked.

He guessed that it started when he began listening to see how long she could go on talking without taking a breath as he'd somehow formed the opinion that she talked until she couldn't breathe. In doing that he noticed that she talked at a steady and easy pace, not fast, so that if you listened you would be certain to understand what she was saying. She did this right down to the tone of her voice. Depending on what she was doing her voice could take on a rather hard commanding edge to it, a light and playful air, or, as he learned was the norm when she rambled on about something to him, an almost sweet and welcoming melodic tone.

As much as he denied it to himself he did actually find her voice somewhat soothing. For someone so accustomed and partial to silence, and although he vehemently denied it, Gaara at times found that he was more than content in just letting her talk so he could hear her voice. This time however, he was listening to every word as she continued to tell him her story.

"My grandfather on my mother's side was visiting that week and had just arrived before the storm. He came into the room after he heard me sniffle from the cold having made my nose run a bit. Neji and Hinata were living with us at the time, which you probably figured out by now, but they were both out cold. Anyway, my grandfather came in and sat down next to me after getting the fireplace rekindled. He wasn't much of a talker. The only man in my family I've ever known to talk a lot is my grandfather on my father's side of the family." Zu admitted and Gaara suppressed a chuckle so he wouldn't interrupt, "I sat there with him and watched the storm ravage the world outside my window until close to dawn when my grandfather closed the drapes to block the sun since tinted windows hadn't been invented then as you know. I clearly remember looking up at him and asking him if it was always going to be like this now. I had never seen such a storm before so it struck my young mind as something out of the ordinary and odd. He told me that no matter how bad things are things will change. As bad as it can be there will always be a calm _after_ the storm. He was right as the next night I remember looking out my window to see everything calm and still again covered in a heavy thick blanket of snow and the trees were covered in icicles."

She smiled then with the memory and laughed softly as she absently leaned back against Gaara before continuing.

"After Neji and Hina woke up we all got dressed and went outside where I promptly started a snowball fight with Neji. Hinata and I against him and my father stood there in the window of his study watching and chasing away anyone that wanted to pull him away from the window. I remember waving too him as he laughed after I'd nailed Neji in the head with a snowball which knocked him flat." She said smiling softly with the memory until Gaara asked something that he really shouldn't have.

"What about your sister?" he asked, more curious than anything else really, and watched her smile drop into a frown instantly.

"She locked me outside in the garden later that night. Out in the bitter cold surrounded by ice and snow then walked away with a sick little smile on her face. That garden only had one door in and out." She stated softly and Gaara couldn't really grasp how her own sister could do that to her.

He had threatened to kill his own siblings multiple times throughout the centuries but there was a difference between threatening it and actually trying.

"I woke up the next night in my own room. I don't really remember how I got out of the garden…not clearly…I didn't remember even then. All I get is this faint image in my mind of a dark hallway and a voice. It's strange but I was young at that age so you can't really expect me to remember everything." Zu stated and he nodded before noticing that she was leaning against him.

"You do realize I'm not a chair?" he asked and she glanced back at him and rolled her eyes and getting up off him completely.

"Happy now?" she asked.

Gaara just looked at her flatly, hiding the fact that the first thing that popped into his mind when she moved was an instinct to pull her back down to his lap. Since he hadn't he couldn't help but notice how cold his lap seemed now. The red head shook it off before she noticed his train of thoughts, something that she always seemed able to do which amazed him, and stood up.

"If you need anything I'll be in my study." He stated before starting to leave.

"It's like you're afraid of spending too much time with me at once." Zu stated teasingly, "Worried my witty personality will rub off on you…Gaara-_sama_?"

Gaara hated when she added the honorific to his name. Not because he had any desire for her to just call him Gaara mind you. It was because every time she added it she always did it mockingly and he hated to be mocked, which of course she knew which is why she did it, and it worked. He turned around slowly as he adjusted the sleeves of shirt while thinking of what exactly to say. Normally he would just kill the first person to mock him, but he couldn't do that here. It was slightly aggravating really. He had to come up with so many different ways to handle things ever since he began dealing with this woman. One thing he was not about to change anytime soon however was letting people mock him. Gaara couldn't kill Zukiyo for mocking him, especially since they were home and Naruto's anti-killing-in-the-house rule was in effect among other reasons he was not about to admit, but nothing prevented him from getting a little…physical.

"No." he stated as he walked towards her in a way that he knew would only make her instinct to back up kick in, which it did, and he cornered her, "However, if you're so sure you want to hang out so bad…I can do that too."

With that he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. Zu wasn't happy but she wasn't as angry as he thought she would be. Mostly she was amused as he walked down the hall with her.

"And what the fuck do you think you're going to do with me?" she asked and heard the male vampire chuckle darkly.

"Not. Telling." Gaara stated in a blatant ploy to trigger her curiosity.

During Gaara's effort to learn as much as he could about this newcomer these past few weeks he had learned a few things he deemed somewhat useful. That she hated being called Princess was one. Recently though, he had learned another even more useful one which was that once you triggered her curiosity she had to satisfy it or it would drive her insane.

"You…bastard." Zu growled, "What are you going to do with me?"

"Not. Telling." He stated again, a little smirk playing on his lips as he walked down the hall with her still over his shoulder.

"Gaara…" she warned to no avail, "Gaara tell me or put me the fuck down."

No answer was given as he turned the corner only to have her start struggling now. This of course didn't change anything as he barely registered she was at all and continued walking. Zukiyo was starting to get a little too curious and a little bit worried as her mind frantically guessed at the possibilities.

"Put me down! Don't you dare fucking lock me outside!"

"Why would I do that?" he asked as he turned another corner and started climbing the stairs to the 3rd floor.

"Because you're a sick, twisted, evil bastard with no morals!" she yelled at him and he laughed and nodded.

"True…but I'm not going to do that."

"Then what _are _you going to do with me?"

"Not. Telling. You'll see soon enough."

**A/N: Yep, another chapter for you all. Not sure when the next chapter will be up but hopefully soon. Until then leave me some reviews and messages! Love you all. Later and peace out!**


	10. Chapter 10: Realization Pt 1

**A/N: Another update for you all so curious about what Gaara is going to do with Zu…maybe. Read and Review for me my lovelies.**

Chapter 10: Realization Pt.1

_May 17, 1823_

"_I'm putting you in charge of Zu's safety, Neji," the king, her father, stated to Neji as soon as the young man had entered the large study that served as the king's office._

_It had only been a few minutes beforehand that the young Hyuga had received word that the king wanted to speak with him. Such words were usually met with dread by those that lived among the Kamitsuyo clan. Kenzo-heika was not one for idle social calls or chit chat so when he summoned you it was safe to assume that he had important issues to discuss with you. Still Neji had not been expecting this to be the topic._

"_You do it automatically anyway I know but now it's official." Zu's father stated as he walked over to the window then back to the other window repeatedly._

_One thing Neji had learned while living here was that Ryouma Kenzo rarely stopped moving. It was normal to see him pacing as if he were a caged animal. In many ways he was, at least in Neji's opinion. To Neji the king was very much like a tiger penned behind steel bars itching for the first chance to get out and tear something to pieces. The Hyuga knew very well it was just the gypsy in the king that made him do such. The entire Ryouma family was the same. They constantly moved, whether it was pacing or just the idle kicking of feet while sitting not one of them could sit still for very long unless necessity required it._

_That's another thing he had learned. During the past fourteen or so years Neji had lived amongst them he had learned that if any of them were sitting still for more than two minutes, something was wrong or they were angry. This applied to Zukiyo as well since she took after her father more than her mother. _

_As such it made looking after her very difficult. He never knew when Zu would just up and disappear on him and Hinata…or with Hinata in tow. It was a rare occasion when Neji _didn't_ spend half the night tracking her down after she eluded her keepers again. That he was the only one that could ever find her was probably why her father was putting him in charge of her safety._

"_You're the only one other than her family that can ever find her after she's gone off on her own as she is wont to do. I would do it myself if I could but…I have too many other things that need my attention." He continued and Neji nodded._

"_I will do my best, sir."_

"_Do better than that." Zu's father stated and looked Neji square in the eye, something the Hyuga hated since the king's gaze had always unnerved him for some reason, "Protect her. Do you hear me?"_

"_Yes, sir. Protect Zukiyo."_

"_Against everything and anything that would do her harm. _Everything and Anything_." He stated and Neji, for the first time ever, read something in the king's usually unreadable gaze…he really did mean everything._

"Everything_? Even…"_

"_Yes. Even the council and Yukiko…and her uncle."_

"_I thought he was in the clan prison for-"_

"Don't_ remind me of what he did. I remember and it still disgusts even me. He was released a fortnight ago. He's due to arrive here tomorrow. If he wasn't Akahana's older brother you very well know he'd still be there. Unfortunately that is also the reason I can't kill him…she's too forgiving of him." The king sighed, mumbling the last sentence, and ran a hand through his hair as he stared out the window standing perfectly still, "Keep Zuzu away from Oniji…and keep him away from her. He may be her uncle but that man has no good intentions anywhere in him."_

"_Yes, sir. I will do as you ask." Neji stated and the king nodded while staring out the window, "Is there anything else you require of me?"_

"_Only that you protect my daughter at all costs. If anything happens to her I am holding you responsible and I _will_ punish you if you fail in this. If so much as one drop of her blood spills when there was something you could have done to stop it…you had better run for your life because I will hunt you down and kill you." He stated and Neji nodded, knowing all too well that the king was serious. _

"_Yes, sir." _

Neji stood there staring out the window of Kankuro's office remembering that conversation as he watched the snow fall. It was as if nature was spiting him with this storm. This damnable storm kept him from doing what he was bid to do that night: protect Zukiyo. That's what Neji always did. He protected her as best he could, kept her out of as much trouble as he could, cleaned up her messes as much as possible, and did whatever else he could to make sure that she stayed alive.

That isn't to say Neji had never failed in protecting her. He had once and it ate at him. Most people would say that one mistake in almost two centuries of work isn't too upsetting but not for Neji as that one mistake had almost cost Zu her life…among other things. So as the snow fell outside, barricading him and Kankuro inside the building, Neji cursed fate more than he ever had.

Zukiyo was alone in the estate with Gaara. Neji knew that Hinata, Naruto, and Temari were also there but that knowledge didn't really comfort him. In his mind she was alone with the biggest threat to her existence on this half of the planet. All he could do was pray that no harm would come to her. Both he and Hinata had agreed to bring her here to keep her safe from her sister but Neji had never guessed that it would be so difficult to keep her safe after they got here. Damn Naruto and his scheming. Neji knew very well that had Naruto not put her in the rooms right next to Gaara's, the red head most likely wouldn't have paid the exiled princess much attention at all.

"Staring at the snow isn't going to make it stop." Kankuro stated from his seat breaking the silence and Neji glanced at him irritably and the other male just blinked calmly at him, "He's not going to hurt her. Especially not while at home. Gaara knows the rules and he does follow them. He knows better than to piss Naruto off."

"Not the point." Neji stated and Kankuro looked at him flatly.

"Then what is?"

"We brought her here to keep her safe…"

"Uh huh…now…I was always a bit lost with that. What are you keeping her safe from? Zu seems very capable of protecting herself…not to mention she's more powerful than you so I don't really see what good you do." The middle Sabaku sibling stated and Neji twitched.

He was starting to lose his temper, it was painfully short these past few weeks after dealing with Zu constantly disappearing on him every night, and he fought to calm himself before he blurted something out that might get back to Gaara. Much to his surprise Kankuro anticipated this.

"Listen. I'm not going to tell my little brother about her if you tell me anything. Gaara has to learn to play nice with others to get his information." Kankuro stated then explained further, "If I went and told him whatever I've learned about Zu he wouldn't bother spending time with her…and I want him to spend time with her. Yeah, yeah…give me the look, I don't really care. Look at it this way. If they do get together…it's a win, win situation for both of us. I get a less cranky and moody little brother…you get an immensely powerful body guard for your charge."

Neji raised an eyebrow; he had never really thought of it like that before and had to give the notion some credit. All logic stated that if Gaara developed some kind of attachment or feelings for Zukiyo he'd protect her. If Gaara saw her as his mate he would protect her or face living without her. As much as it bothered Neji to think of such a thing happening he had to face the facts. He was too much of a rational thinker to deny facts and facts were that Gaara was powerful, more so than Yukiko when you got right down to it, and he was a force to be reckoned with in his own right. It pained Neji to admit it but Gaara could do much more to protect Zukiyo than he himself could. As such Sabaku no Gaara could be a very useful ally to have if things turned for the worse, which Neji had no doubts that they would eventually. Still it was dangerous to even consider any of this as the biggest obstacle to Gaara developing something for Zukiyo was Zu herself and Neji wasn't about to deny that to anyone.

"As true as that may be…you aren't factoring in one thing to this." Neji started while he returned to staring out the window.

"What?"

"Zu. You're assuming she's an average woman with the average woman's wants, desires, and tendencies."

"You're saying she's not?" Kankuro asked a bit incredulously.

"Exactly."

"Ok…what do you mean exactly?"

"Zu isn't going to just fall heads over heels for anyone. That would require opening herself up to him. While she may seem like an open book since she talks…_nonstop_…she's not. Zu keeps a lot of things closed off from others. Not to say she doesn't have desires, she has plenty and she acts upon them too, frequently." Neji stated and saw a rather amused expression on Kankuro's face, "What?"

"Just your expression while saying that is all. Honestly I'm a bit surprised you're so open about that."

"Open? That's not me being open, Kankuro, that's me being honest. Zukiyo has had her own fair share of lovers…unfortunately for them Zu isn't really big on attachment and relationships. What you and Naruto are doing is pretty much tossing two people that have no interest in opening up and making themselves vulnerable in the same room with the expectation that everything is going to go ok and they'll both come out stronger and better than they were. That isn't going to happen. Not with Zu."

"You know…you are such a depressing pessimist." Kankuro stated, "You're making this out to be the most improbable thing in the universe. Gaara is a man. Zukiyo is a woman. Gaara is a bloodthirsty, homicidal maniac. Zu is a bloodthirsty, homicidal maniac I can tell. They get along great so far. Some playful banter and growling but that's expected. What in Hell makes you so sure that they'll never get any closer?"

"Because you're oversimplifying it, Kankuro. Zu may be what you said but she's also a fugitive from the vampiric ruling body."

"Is she really that important to the Kamitsuyo clan that they would come all the way out here to get her back? Wait, don't answer that…with what I've been hearing about the current queen I can't really put that past them." Kankuro stated with a slightly worried expression on his face.

"Yukiko is insane. She always has been…even before the dementia from not feeding set in…" Neji stated absently while staring at the snow fall steadily, lulling him into a sort of sleepy daze.

Under normal circumstances Neji would have never said what he did next. It wouldn't have even dared cross his mind if he had been paying more attention, but snow has a tendency to alter one's senses. So as Neji sat there staring at the falling snow, slightly entranced by the way it fell hard yet slowly he let something slip.

"They've always been polar opposites…"

To most people it wouldn't have been that big of a slip but for Kankuro it was as it triggered a memory…

_October 21, 1818_

"_You don't look happy to see me, Father," Kankuro stated as he walked into his father's office._

_Things had been tense in the Sabaku clan headquarters ever since his mother, Karura, died giving birth to his little brother Gaara. Their father had never been a kind man even when she was alive, but since her death it was almost unbearable to be around him. He outright refused to be around his children a good chunk of the time, busying himself with territorial duties and the like, which left Kankuro and Temari to deal with raising their little brother. Their father hated Gaara with a passion as he blamed him for his wife's death. In a part he was._

_Gaara was the single most powerful Sabaku ever born. That was evident as an infant. Jade eyes rimmed in the black of an Ichibi Demon, the demonic breed that their clan had descended from. Giving birth to something that powerful was difficult and it didn't help that the midwife in attendance was clueless on how to handle what was happening. Regardless of all the other factors that lead to their mother's death their father still saw fit to lay all the blame on Gaara's shoulders. _

"_Gaara kill another person you deemed important?" Kankuro asked as he sat down._

_Kankuro couldn't deny that his brother was a bloodthirsty killer. Ever since he was a small child he had had problems controlling his blood lust and his temper. Being as powerful as he was that meant Gaara could pretty much do as he pleased…which he did and it drove their father insane. Kankuro believed it to be a sort of way for Gaara to get back at their father for ignoring him as a child. _

"_Not yet." His father answered._

"_Then why the expression, Father?"_

"_I have just returned from a meeting with the Queen's council, since as you know, I am not permitted to deal with the Queen herself."_

"_I still do not understand why that is."_

"_I upset the King."_

"_So you've stated before."_

"_That's all you need to know. Normally that would be enough to put me in a foul temper but this time I had the fortune, good or bad I do not know, to encounter the princess." The elder Sabaku stated and earned a rather confused look from his eldest son._

"_You have met the princess before on these trips of yours…"_

"_The other one…there are two, Kankuro…not one as the council would have us all believe. That is why I am in such a foul mood as you've put it. Yukiko-hime is the Heir Apparent true but she isn't the only princess…she has a twin sister. You know I have no love of the princess. I've stated that before. Yukiko-hime is unbalanced in some way even more so than I think your brother is and if the throne ever passes to her we will all suffer from it."_

"_I don't see how this has put you in such a mood."_

"_It has because her sister is sane, or at least much more balanced than Yukiko-hime is, and yet the Queen refuses to pass over Yukiko in favor of her sister because the council refuses it due to tradition. It shows weakness in her rule. Akahana-heika has named an unbalanced, dementia plagued, shell of a vampiress as her heir. That is insanity."_

"_Not everyone is as willing to ignore their children as you are, Father." Kankuro stated, irritated with this conversation and his father's thinking._

"_I'm not in the mood to argue with you right now Kankuro and that isn't the point."_

"_Then what is?"_

"_They're twins. Everything about them is in opposites. Yukiko-hime was born in the old century on New Year's Eve four minutes before midnight…her sister was born in the new century four minutes _after _midnight on New Year's Day. Yukiko-hime denies her nature as a vampire but her sister embraces it. The council favors Yukiko-hime but chastise her sister for every little thing even if it is not her fault. That's how I saw her…and even in appearances they are almost opposites. Yukiko-hime reminds one of an emaciated corpse almost…stringy straight hair, pale dead skin, sunken eyes, a dead…lead-laced steel about the grey in her eyes. Before you go on about how I noticed these things it's because it is impossible for one to _not_ notice." His father stated, obviously in disbelief at how anyone could not notice any of that then continued, "Her sister…the younger princess is her polar opposite: curly hair, fair skinned, but it's the eyes you notice most. Whereas her sister's eyes are leaden…hers are silver almost…light grey that have the mischievous smile of her predecessors shining in them even as she's being chastised for some trifling matter."_

"_What were they chastising her for?" Kankuro asked, knowing all too well that when his father decided to rant about something it was best to listen to him and show you were listening or face the dire consequences that only Gaara seemed able to escape._

"_Some trifling matter involving her free spirited ways…I don't know exactly. In her defense one can't really expect her to act differently as she was raised by her father's family and they've always been and always will be free spirited gypsies." His father answered, reminding Kankuro of the days when he and his father actually could sit and talk to each other without argument, "Not to mention that they named her after Akahana-heika's mother…and Zukiyo-heika was in a category of her own from what I've heard and read. I don't know why I'm telling you this…get out…I have business to attend to."_

As the memory faded in Kankuro's mind Neji knew what the look on his face was: Realization. Kankuro knew…and Neji cursed himself for letting even that little bit slip. He did so because he should have remembered that while Kankuro may act like a cocky idiot half the time it didn't mean Kankuro was stupid by any means. So as Neji looked at the other male, he could only guess at what was going through Kankuro's mind…and none of it was good.

"Zu…kiyo…_hime_." Kankuro said slowly as he voice out loud what he had just realized then glared at the Hyuga, "You…are hiding…the _princess_…_HERE_?"

"GAARA PUT ME DOWN THIS INSTANT!"

Gaara had to admit he was surprised she was still fighting at this point. Truthfully he had believed she would have just given in by now. It wasn't really working in her favor either. The more fuss she put up the farther into the house he had taken her.

So far Gaara had carried her through three wings and up two stories then down another three. He was fairly sure that there was no way Zu could know where they were at that moment.

"What's wrong, Vixen?"

Hinata looked up from the book she had just been staring at into the blue eyes of Naruto, _her_ Naruto, and was unsure of how to answer him. A lot of things were bothering her. The Kyuubi demon sat down next to her on the couch in his study waiting for an answer.

"I know something is…you have that look on your face." He stated and kissed the top of her head when she leaned against him, "So what is bothering my lovely vampiress tonight?"

"Zu and Gaara…I haven't seen them all night." She stated while staring out the window watching the snow fall and Naruto chuckled.

"That could be considered a good thing." He stated that slightly perverted smirk on his face that Hinata so loved.

"Not this early, Naruto, and you do not want that to happen."

"Why not? It is my personal opinion that Gaara could use some of that. Might make him less of a grump." The Kyuubi stated still smirking.

"If he lived through it…Zu has a habit of killing all her lovers after she's done with them. Rips their hearts out usually…occasionally she toys with them for longer but they still wind up dead. You don't want her to sleep with him until they've actually grown much closer." Hinata stated but Naruto was still trying to wrap his head around this new information as she stared out the window, "As for why…well many reasons. Partially because she can…partially because she gets bored with them, they don't please her, or some such thing…partially because…many things. You never really know _why_ Zu does anything…she just does it."

Naruto nodded and could only hope that his friend made it out alive as the thought that he may have gotten Gaara in over his head ran across Naruto's mind. Still that didn't stop him from worrying about Hinata as he knew there was more bothering her.

"What else?"

"Yukiko _will_ come for Zu eventually, Naruto-kun. We can only hide her so long. What will happen when that time comes? I cannot just sit by and watch Yukiko destroy Zu anymore." Hinata stated as she looked into her demon's eyes worriedly and he did his best to comfort and reassure her.

"She will not get Zu. You brought her here for protection and she will have it. I am not going to just stand there and let some demented little bloodlust denying brat waltz in and take Zu. Not from my house or my city. Gaara won't let it happen either…he's insanely territorial."

"He still has to submit to the law of the clan, Naruto. Vampiric hierarchy dictates-"

"Hina-chan, don't try explaining that…I don't understand your vampiric laws…all I understand about vampires is they like blood, hate the sun, and in your case are damn sexy." Naruto stated and she blushed bright red, "You are. I'm not going to lie to you…fine…I will. You're not sexy…you're just pretty."

"N-Naruto…you-you're n-not helping!" Hinata said as she flushed even more which only encouraged the demon.

"Well…the sooner you get used to hearing me tell you all these embarrassing things the sooner you'll stop blushing. At least you don't faint around me anymore." Naruto stated teasingly, that fox grin plastered across his face as usual, "Now…stop worrying about everything. Zu is fine and safe here, Gaara will come around eventually, so will Zu, Neji will stop interfering so much or I'll trap him in the hedge maze…"

"Naruto!" she chastised, the embarrassed stutter now gone, and he gave her one of his goofy grins almost bordering on innocent.

"Sorry, Hina-chan…can't help it."

"You still know better." She stated, trying to glare but failed when he pouted at her.

"I know…"

"DOES NARUTO KNOW?" Kankuro shouted angrily at the Hyuga that sat calmly across the room from him.

Kankuro couldn't remember any recent time he had been so furious. Zukiyo was the exiled princess and undeclared Heir Apparent. Just having her in the city was infinitely more dangerous than if she wasn't a princess. Not to mention that there was no doubt at all that the queen would come to claim her sister and severely punish those harboring the fugitive.

"Yes. Naruto knows she's a princess." Neji stated almost curtly and Kankuro couldn't believe his ears.

"_WHAT_? He _knows_? How…wha-….what the…_fuck_ was he thinking? Was he thinking at all?" Kankuro raged and glared at Neji, "Why the fuck did you bring her here?"

"We needed someplace to hide her." Neji stated calmly, "This is the farthest place we could take her to hide her safely."

"Wha…Naruto is an IDIOT!" Kankuro snarled and returned to glaring at Neji, "You…"

"Don't." Neji warned and glared back, "I know having her here is dangerous to you and your family but there was no other _choice_! If we didn't get Zu away she would have been killed!"

"Can't she defend herself?" Kankuro asked angrily, furious at being dragged into the middle of vampiric politics and intrigue, and Neji growled at him.

"Zukiyo is weaker than her sister…Zu is strong yes, she has a lot of power, but to Yukiko…Zu is nothing more than a rag doll. She _can't_ defend herself against her sister, Kankuro…no more than you could defend yourself against, _Gaara_." Neji stated and Kankuro calmed himself before speaking again.

"Speaking of Gaara…you told him Zu had no title. He's not going to take it well when he finds out she _does_."

"I lied to him to protect her. Zu is a princess…that is something that can be used against her. Do you know how many want to sleep with, conquer, kill, or own her just because she has a title? A lot. Now…do you still want him with Zu now that you know what she is?" Neji asked and Kankuro had to pause for thought.

It was an almost insulting question really and yet Kankuro couldn't help but feel conflicted at how to answer. Zukiyo was a princess and that changed things. It made this whole thing much more dangerous and yet he couldn't judge her because of it. Being a princess didn't change the fact she was a perfect match for his little brother. Still…could he really go along with this while keeping Gaara in the dark about her title?

"Princess…shouting like that isn't lady like." The red head stated intending to make her angrier and succeeded.

"I don't give a flying fuck about what is lady like. Put. Me. _Down_." Zu stated in an almost calm fury which amused her captor to no end, "Put me down…or tell me where you are taking me."

"No." Gaara stated flatly and continued to carry her where he wished and climbed another set of stairs as he decided to annoy her more, "You can't get everything you want, Princess."

"Stop with the 'Princess' already!" she snapped irritably at the title that she hated so much.

"Do you Kankuro? If you _do_…then you cannot tell Gaara her title until it's time. If…you really want this to happen…he can't know until _Zu_ tells him. If she thinks for just a minute that the only reason he wants her is because of her title she will run…or kill him. Trust me I know how her mind works. She kills the moment she thinks someone is going to hurt her…and if she doesn't _I_ do. So…do you still want her with your brother?"

"Zu is still Zu. Princess or not." Kankuro answered, "Neji, you can't deny that they are perfectly matched for each other."

"Yes I can." The Hyuga stated back then continued, "I'd be lying to myself if I denied it anymore though. Don't look so satisfied with yourself, Kankuro. I might be unable to deny it but by no means does that indicate I am in favor of this plan you and Naruto concocted."

"What is she to _you_?" Kankuro asked suddenly and Neji looked at him slightly confused as to where the question came from, "Really? She's your princess, just as she is mine, and your charge or whatever, but there has to be more for you to be _this_ protective of her. So…what is she to you?"

"Down…you want down?" Gaara asked as if he hadn't heard Zu at all this entire time.

"YES YOU FUCKING TANUKI FACED _BASTARD_!" she shouted in her full fury having lost her temper completely a while ago, "PUT ME DOWN!"

Gaara nodded and tossed her down so she landed hard on her rear then turned and walked away. Zu's only reaction was to of course ask him what the hell he was doing. She got no answer and soon realized that he had _left_ her there. What made matters worse was that Zu had no idea where she was. Yet instead of being afraid of being lost inside the great house with all its moving rooms and wishing that Gaara would come back Zu was still furious. He had pushed the 'Princess' button a little too much for her not to be.

"I am done playing nice with him." Zu stated to the empty hallway as she stood up with the intent to start finding her way back to everyone else, "He thinks I'm hard to learn about and deal with now? Just wait until I find my way back. The time for fun and games is over for him...now it's my turn."

**A/N: What did you **_**think**_** he was going to do with her? You people are just way too perverted and sick for your own good sometimes. Just kidding. Next chapter will hopefully be up soon. Until then leave some reviews or messages. I'll reply as soon as I possibly can.**


	11. Chapter 11: Attraction

**A/N: Yes, another update. I'm on a role with this story I do think. Anyway I won't keep you long. Read, Review, and Enjoy. **

Chapter 11: Attraction

Hinata was starting to worry. It had been two days since she had last seen Zu. Neji was hoping to get back tonight as well, provided they plowed the road when they were supposed to and she knew he would not be happy to hear that she had no idea where their friend was. Gaara had resurfaced yesterday as if nothing at all was going on but that was normal for him. Naruto had questioned him about Zukiyo's whereabouts and according to him all Gaara would say or knew was that Zu was wandering around the house somewhere.

Naruto knew this to some extent as the house and he were connected in some way. Hinata guessed it had something to do with the mysterious South Wing. The very first time she and Neji had ever set foot in this house they were both warned to never enter the South Wing. Of course she had asked why. All the answer Hinata had ever received, since she had asked multiple times since then, was that it was dangerous. She had only received a slightly more detailed answer once…

_June 30, 1983_

_Hinata woke instantly as the door to the room opened. _

"_Hina-chan?"_

_She and Neji had just arrived a few hours earlier and she was surprised to not have been met by the Kyuubi demon himself at the door as he usually did. Instead they were met by a slightly worried looking Temari. All the eldest Sabaku would say was that they had a bit of a fright earlier in the evening when one of the chandeliers in the dining room had fallen for no apparent reason and that Naruto was busy fixing something else in the house. Neji had simply nodded before going to the rooms that had been designated as his to rest and recover from the jet lag. Hinata had found herself looking for their demonic host not soon afterwards and her search had eventually led her to his personal rooms._

_When she didn't find him there either Hinata had sat herself down on his couch to wait for him. It was in her opinion the boldest thing she had ever done. Hyuga Hinata, despite having spent a good amount of time around gypsies and Zu herself, had never been that forward when it came to men…men she was incredibly attracted to. It was a part of her upbringing she supposed or possibly because of her Hyuga heritage. Whatever caused it did not matter at that moment as Hinata had pushed it aside in favor of her other family's traits. Zukiyo was her sister in many ways and Zu's family was Hinata's family. It had been almost a decade since she, Neji, or Zu had seen them last and not one of them could hide the fact that they missed the Ryouma family. That was partially why she and Neji were here. This place allowed them to get away from the affairs of the Kamitsuyo clan and rule of their new queen and yet when Naruto walked through that door all her thoughts went to him._

_He looked exhausted. That was all it took for her worry to reach an insane level. Hinata had never seen the Kyuubi demon look even remotely tired so when he walked in looking completely exhausted she knew something was wrong._

"_Naruto…what happened?" she stated as she stood up and went over to him._

_His eyes were an almost burnt out reddish orange as they looked down into hers. She just couldn't get passed how exhausted he seemed. _

"_Nothing." He stated and received a disbelieving look from Hinata before telling her the truth, "I had to deal with something in the South Wing, Hina. I'll be fine. What are you doing here though? We weren't expecting you for another two weeks. Miss me too much?"_

_There it was again, that smile, that fox-like grin of his plastered across his face. However, it didn't make her blush as it usually did, well…it did a little bit but not as much. Hinata just couldn't help herself sometimes around him. It didn't help that Naruto seemed to view it as encouragement._

"_Yes, I did, but that's not the point." She admitted and continued to fuss over him in his exhausted state, "What happened? What…what is in that wing that you exhaust yourself dealing with? If you don't tell me I swear I'm going to go and find out myself."_

_Naruto had blinked almost stupidly at that point. Obviously he wasn't expecting her to actually admit to missing him…especially with no stuttering or intense blushing. It was also in that instant his eyes had flashed back to their normal blue and he caught her hand in his as she continued to look him over._

"_Never go in that wing, Hina-chan. It's too dangerous." Naruto stated as he looked down at her and leaned into her touch as she held his head in her hands._

"_Why? Don't…avoid things or make them less than they are with me. I deal with that every day with the clan. I don't want it from you."_

"_That wing isn't like the rest of the house. It…I'm not really sure how to explain it…"_

"_Try."_

"_I'm a demon. Demons aren't like vampires…vampires have more control over their power in a way. Demons don't...it…seeps out and into things I guess you could say. That wing absorbed a lot of it and changed. That's all I can really figure out." Naruto tried to explain before worrying more about her, "Why are you here so early though?"_

The sight of Naruto walking towards her at that moment brought her back to the present, concern for her friend still showing on her face as the Kyuubi reached her and wrapped his arms around her in a hug

"She's okay, relax. I would know if anything happened to her. They're plowing the road now though so Neji will be back soon. Hopefully Zu will have resurfaced by then."

She didn't though. When Neji walked through that door Hinata still had no idea where their friend was. He however did not give her the time to say that as he immediately went off in the direction of Zukiyo's rooms to check in on her. He returned a few minutes later and Hinata dreaded what was going to happen next.

"Where is Naruto?" he asked and Hinata must have stared at him confusedly, "They only plowed half the road and I figured he might want to know that since there really isn't much of a way to get down the mountain and Zu needs to feed tonight or she'll try to feed off of _him_ again."

"He's in the kitchen making ramen I think. How is Zu? I haven't seen her yet today." Hinata had to ask.

"She's in her room watching Pirates of the Caribbean." Neji stated and ran a hand through his hair, "She seems to be in a bit of a mood today but I'm not really sure if that's the lack of feeding or something else."

"Probably both." Hinata replied, still confused as to where their princess had been the past two days, "You look tired, Nii-san. Why don't I take her out tonight?"

Neji just looked at Hinata for a few seconds. She rarely ever offered to take Zu out to hunt. Still he couldn't deny that he was tired and in desperate need of a few hours of sleep.

"Alright. Keep her out of too much trouble."

"I don't know what your problem with her is. She always behaves herself with me."

"You two are going on as if I am a child. I can behave myself when I see fit to. Let's go. I'm Hungry and I'm sure you are too." Zukiyo stated as she walked up to the pair with a very familiar wicked glint in her eyes that Hinata recognized much better than Neji; it meant she was in the mood to tease and torture.

Hinata could only wonder at what had put Zu in this mood as they set out to hunt. Which they did, Zu disappearing for a while with her prey after having teased him into a near stupor, before running into Gaara sometime later as they sat in the back of a bar surveying the occupants. The Hyuga heiress could see a difference in the exiled princess's smile. It only seemed welcoming when in reality it was really saying: "Hi…if you want me to rip you to pieces then sure you can come closer." The red head also noticed the change but he hid it as he sat and spoke to her.

"What brings you here tonight…Gaara?" Zu asked, the look on her face very much like you'd imagine that of a cat on the prowl's to be.

"Business."

"Oh really? What a coincidence I happen to be in the same place you have… 'business'." Zu stated and Gaara narrowed his eyes in a defensive manner ever so slightly.

"Are you accusing me of lying, Zu?" Gaara asked and watched the female warily as she stood.

"Why would I _ever_ do _that_?" Zu asked while she walked around to the back of his chair, "We both know you're an honest man…"

"_Good gods she's pissed at him…this…is bad._" Hinata thought as she watched her friend lean over and whisper something the red head's ear.

"Seek me out like this _again_…" Zu whispered into his ear as she wrapped her arms around his neck from behind then nipped his ear teasingly, "…and I'll rip your fucking_ ears_ off...for starters."

With that she detached herself from the red head and left with Hinata. It took a few seconds before Gaara could register what had just happened and breath. No one had ever threatened him before, threatened him like _that_ at least. It was interesting…and just a bit sexy. Not for the first time Gaara found himself questioning his own sanity. All he concluded was that he was a sane as he ever was, that he would have to watch his step around this female more than he had been, and that for some reason he wanted to eliminate her as a threat just a bit less than he did before what had just happened.

The air was cold and sharp as the pale eyed female Hyuga followed the exiled princess down the street. She wasn't sure what to make of what had just happened other than it wasn't a good development for the plan of getting the two together. As a supporter of the plan she hoped and prayed that it was only a short mood swing of some sort. Unfortunately it wasn't.

Christmas passed, as well as Zu's birthday and Gaara's, before any of them heard Zukiyo speak a nonthreatening sentence to the red head. As much of a setback this was predicted to be it wasn't; this just wasn't realized by anyone. It so happened that the more Zu threatened Gaara the more time he would inevitably spend trying to get closer to her. Still it was a triumph when she finally spoke to him without threatening some body part or another.

"You're in a better mood today it seems." Gaara stated to his companion as he passed her the glass she had politely asked for, "You didn't threaten my hands or anything."

"Aww…did I disappoint you?" Zu asked and blinked cutely at him in that teasing way she had before taking a sip from the red filled glass.

"More like surprised." Gaara stated and took a sip from his own glass while calmly looking at her in much the same way she looked back at him as the others silently watched.

The eldest Sabaku couldn't ignore the fact that she was surprised Gaara hadn't killed this female. As such Temari sat and watched the two and realized that the pair enjoyed teasing and baiting each other. It was the faintest hint of a smile on her brother's face that gave it away for him and the glint in Zukiyo's eyes that gave it away for her. When she thought back through the past week or so she could see it in their interactions too. Although Zukiyo had continued to issue some kind of threat to Gaara's person daily the threats were met with a barely noticeable smile on the pair's faces. Each day it became a bit more of an inside joke type of thing than the previous day. It surprised her in a way that her brother enjoyed this kind of torture and yet it didn't. Gaara had always loved a challenge and Zukiyo was definitely a challenge for him. That he found entertainment in it wasn't so surprising when you looked at it like that. Yet there was the other angle that Temari couldn't ignore.

It was obvious to many in the household if not the city that the red head was growing more and more attached to this female. That they could barely notice it at all was amazing. As such it was almost as if they all had the same collective thought to leave the two alone before getting caught up in any potential fight that made the household disperse.

Zukiyo sipped from her glass again while looking back at the red head across from her. It was time to enter stage two of her plan.

"So what is on tonight's agenda?" she asked him as she ran her finger around the rim of her glass idly.

Gaara knew she was up to something but he didn't know what and cursed himself for it. She was distracting him with those subtle looks and gestures which he knew was her intention. Still he had no doubt in his mind that he had to figure out what she was trying to distract him from before she accomplished that feat.

"Why?"

"Curious as to whether or not we'll run into each other." She stated as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and Gaara raised a brow.

"You've spent the past month or so threatening every body part I possess and all of a sudden you want to spend time with me?"

"Yeah. So?" she asked and tilted her head and blinked in a way that even Gaara had to admit was cute…and distracting.

"Okay…if you _must_ know nothing is really on the agenda for tonight."

"That means I get to hang out with you all night since my usual keepers have their own business of some sort to tend to that will keep them from keeping an eye on me."

"You are not my responsibility." Gaara stated then watched the female get up after she finished her glass and walk towards him while he drained the last of his glass.

The last thing he was expecting Zukiyo to do was sit on his lap when she reached him. It threw him off guard a bit to have her so close to him again. The red head had forgotten how warm Zu was and had forgotten how intoxicating her scent was this close up. It was all he could do to restrain himself from biting her just then. She wasn't helping the situation either.

"Who said I was your responsibility?" Zu asked as she gently wiped a small drop of blood off the corner of his mouth with her thumb then proceeded to lick her thumb clean while waiting for an answer.

"No one." He answered while still fighting to control himself and felt her arms wrap around his neck lightly as she sat on his lap still.

"Exactly…because I'm not. I just figured it might be nice to spend some time with you tonight instead of threatening your appendages. I mean…I am a guest in your territory and I wouldn't have you think I'm ungrateful for your hospitality." Zu stated and blinked at him again almost innocently while her fingers played with his hair lightly.

The male wasn't quite sure of what to make of this. He knew very well that she was up to something but he still couldn't pass up the chance to learn more about her as this was the first chance he'd had in about a month. The way she was acting today also triggered a few of his baser instincts which were major contributors to what he said next.

"Very well."

"Yay!" she exclaimed happily and hugged him.

He froze. This was…new. No one really hugged him other than Naruto when the Kyuubi was in a mood to annoy the life out of him. When that happened he did everything in his power to detach the demon but in this case he wasn't quite sure of what to do. Considering the red head had just manage to somehow get back in the silver eyed female's good graces he didn't think pushing her away would be a good idea. Besides, he didn't really _want_ to push her away. This was in truth probably the entire reason his arms slowly found their way around her waist returning the hug lightly.

This however surprised the female. Zu wasn't expecting him to hug back at all; instead she was expecting him to be his usual grumpy self and complain about it. Yet as unexpected as it was, Zukiyo found herself enjoying it a little more than she liked at that moment. She wasn't about to let it get to her however. She was still in PJs and needed to get dressed if she was going out somewhere with this man.

"I need to go get dressed though so you may want to let me go." She whispered in his ear earning a nod as he slowly released her then changed his mind, "Gaara…"

The next thing she knew Zu was holding on tight as he stood up with her. Apparently Gaara decided to carry her for some reason. She knew very well that she couldn't really do anything except hope he wouldn't drop her somewhere far back in the house again. That was very unlikely in her opinion considering he wasn't carrying her like a sack of flour this time.

"What are you doing with me this time?" she asked, unable to help herself.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Gaara stated, teasing her, then continued to carry her down the hall and made a turn in the direction of their rooms.

The sole reason he was doing this was purely because the red head decided that two could play at this game. If Zu wanted to try and play his instincts and desires against him he could easily do the same to her. It wasn't something he normally did but it didn't hurt to try something new every once in a while. He was starting to learn that Zu was much more of a mental torturer and player than a physical one, which is what he was. That didn't mean he couldn't play mind games however.

"Gaara…you are an evil bastard." Zu stated as she held onto him and he chuckled making her smile a bit involuntarily, "I don't think I'd have you any other way though…it would be very boring if you were."

"Good. We're here." He stated and opened the door to her room and dropped her on her bed, "Get dressed, Princess. I actually do have one thing I have to take care of tonight that your help might be useful for so make sure you look good."

"Are you saying I don't look good every day?" she asked a bit mock defensively as she lay back on her bed then blinked at him and he smirked.

"Better than usual then, Princess. Just don't take all night." He stated then left her to get dressed while he did the same.

"Better than usual…hmm…how will I ever manage that?" Zukiyo amusedly thought out loud as she got up, walked into her closet, settled on something and smiled, "Easily done."

Red had always been her favorite color, just as it was her mother's, and it had always been the best color on her. It was for this reason that she chose a blood red corset top with black lace detailing on the boning and laces paired with black pants. The whole outfit would hug her curves quite well she knew and leave just enough skin exposed to provoke thought. Short heeled boots would do for tonight she supposed as she decided what to wear around her neck. Something a little more revealing than the light scarf she wore now Zu decided. To suit this need she pulled out a choker made of tiny black jet beads in a lace design with three tear drop cut blood red garnets dangling down from three jet beaded strings, the middle longer than the two side ones so that the garnet nestled itself between her two collar bones. It very much resembled a chandelier in her mind and was one of her favorites when she felt like teasing as it covered her neck while letting some skin peak through at the same time. She paired it with red drop earrings and a few black bangle bracelets on one wrist and a cuff on the other. It was a habit that Zu protected her wrists almost as closely as she protected her neck on certain occasions.

"Are you decent?" Zu heard his voice asking from the other side of her door as she just finished her preparations.

"That of course depends on your definition of decent." She stated with a small smile splayed across her lips while she walked across the room then opened the door for him.

For only a second Zu saw nothing but pure lust in his eyes as he looked down at her then it was gone, not completely though. He masked it underneath his usual stare of indifference. As short as it was, it was all Zukiyo needed to know she had succeeded.

"You will need a coat." He stated and she rolled her eyes.

"I am well aware of that…and you should be aware that I am aware as you very well know my distaste for cold," Zu stated with a slightly scornful smirk on her face as she turned to walk back into her room while gesturing that he may enter, "Where is this business taking us tonight might I ask?"

"I have a small band of weak purebloods encroaching on my territory. I've let them be for far too long and they seem to think nothing will happen to them if they try to take more of my territory," Gaara explained and helped her into a coat, "I thought that maybe you would like to help me correct their thinking."

"I do believe I would enjoy that very much." Zu stated and smiled up at him pleasantly and took his arm when he offered it, "You seem to be in a gentlemanly mood this evening."

"I don't want to be caught on your bad side again." He admitted and she smiled at him.

"Bad side? My dear Gaara…that was only my irritated side. My bad side is much more bloody." Zu said and earned a short chuckle from her male companion as they set out from their home.

A few hours later Gaara sat at a table across from the leader of his small problem. Truthfully he didn't need help in dealing with them. It was only from a desire to spend some more time with Zu that lead him to bring her along. Currently she was at work picking off their adversaries one by one somewhere else in the room baiting them with subtle gestures that hinted to them they only need to try harder to gain her favor. Gaara didn't really mind as it kept them distracted from their leader's dealings with him. It amazed and amused him how easily she could attract others to her with that smile of hers. A more charming smile he had never beheld on a female. Still he did not let it distract him from the task at hand.

"Why should we adhere to your boundaries?" the man across from him asked, seemingly amused with the thought that he had to listen to one lone pureblood and his female companion, "There are more of us than you."

"Indeed. What would you propose we do then?" Gaara asked in response, not that he cared, he was going to kill this person regardless of what came out of his mouth; he was only giving Zu more time to thin out the ranks before making a move.

"I would propose you concede…say…a quarter of your territory to us and we leave it at that…" the man stated and Gaara watched his eyes wander to something behind the red head which Gaara knew to be Zu, "What a lovely vision this is. Done playing with the boys now are we?"

"They bored me." Gaara heard her state as he felt her arms slide over his shoulders from behind and lightly wrap around him as she leaned over, "I do believe I exhausted them with my neediness."

"And what pray tell are your needs?" the man asked and Gaara felt the smile curl up on Zu's face more than he could see it as her head was right next to his at that point, "Maybe I can help you with that."

"I highly doubt that." Gaara stated as one of his hands idly reached up and played at Zu's bracelet, his fingers lightly brushing against her skin as he did.

"Why do you say that?" he asked and scowled as he watched Zu lightly nuzzle the red head's ear before kissing his cheek, "Yours too?"

"Not exactly…no one can own Zu."

"Many have died trying." Zu stated with her voice giving off the air of one only adding some amusement to a conversation.

"Yes they have. Go amuse yourself somehow, Princess. I'll be done soon." Gaara stated, adding a small hint of affection to her nickname so she wouldn't glare at him as she usually did, as he felt the presence of a few others walk in.

"Promise?" Zu asked, acting very much the enamored young lover for all to see, and her red headed companion nodded before she turned away and left.

"A quarter of my territory?" Gaara asked a few minutes later, letting this idiotic man watch Zu for a moment as she talked to his subordinates and randomly sent them off for something, "The answer is no."

"What is stopping us from just killing you and taking what I want?" the man asked while watching Zukiyo and the next thing he knew he had Gaara's hand around his throat.

"The fact I'll kill you first." Gaara stated with his fangs bared in a snarl as something about the way this man said that angered him more than he originally predicted then heard Zukiyo hiss irritably before hearing a pained grunt from behind him.

The body dropped just as Gaara turned to see what had happened. Zukiyo held in her blood stained hand the heart of the man she had just been talking to. Gaara glanced at his captive to see horror and fear displayed across his face before he heard Zu speak.

"I told you to keep your filthy little hands to yourself." She stated and crushed the heart in her hands as someone else walked into the room and went to attack her, "Bad idea."

Next thing anyone knew Zu had her attacker held still as she sank her fangs deep into his neck and drained every last drop of blood from the struggling body. Gaara quickly eliminated his own captive, ripping his throat out, and then set to the task of helping Zukiyo take out the rest of this small band. It was easy enough as she had managed to separate them all into different areas of the building with various promises. He couldn't say that he really approved of this method but it worked well enough.

They met back in the main room just as the last small group of the band walked in on the massacre. Zu was busy with sucking her fingers clean of the blood that covered them so she sat herself down on the table and crossed her legs as Gaara walked forward.

"Save me the one in the back. He's been eyeing me the wrong way and I'd very much like to deal with it personally…as soon as I'm done cleaning my mess." She stated and Gaara smirked and chuckled as he nodded.

Watching Gaara kill was fun Zukiyo found. He had killed while out with her before but Zukiyo had never actually witnessed it, usually going off on her own to kill while he did. A small smile crept across her lips as she realized that Gaara's blood lust matched her own if not surpassed it. She had never come across such a thing before and it pleased and excited her in some way she couldn't explain. When she was finished cleaning herself Zukiyo slid down off of the table and walked up to the one she had marked as her kill, slumped down against the wall, and gripped his collar then hoisted him up. She felt absolutely no pity for the insolent wretch that had been undressing her with his eyes as she proceeded to gouge them out.

The red head watched as she did so, fascinated with her actions as he had never seen her kill before tonight, and found that she enjoyed the kill just about as much as he did. It was out of habit that he blocked out the pitiful screaming of her victim as she went about searching for something in a drawer. He could guess at what since on the ride over he had told her of a certain problem these vampires were causing.

"You turned unwilling humans you little bastard." She stated to her victim as she found what she was looking for.

These vampires had taken it upon themselves to forcibly turn humans. It was a highly frowned upon act even when the human was willing but it was against vampiric law to turn the unwilling. Gaara didn't particularly care for humans but doing so created untold problems. The most prevalent of those problems was that many unwilling human turned vampires became vampire hunters. Human vampire hunters were bad enough to deal with as they were all highly trained and impossible to reason with. Vampiric vampire hunters were even more deadly as they had the strengths of their quarry and an infinite amount of sheer hate for them as well. This was the reason that forcibly turning humans was never tolerated by any vampire that knew better and there was only one punishment.

"Hold him down for me, he's squirming too much." Zu stated and Gaara held down the other male by the throat as he forced the mouth open, "Thank you."

"No! No! Not that! NO!" the male pleaded when he realized what was going to happen as Zukiyo wrenched his mouth open more and gripped his left fang in the pair of pliers then began to twist while she pulled.

The scream was almost deafening to their sensitive hearing as she ripped his fangs out. When she was done Zu let her male companion finish him off as he see fit while she went and sat back down on the edge of the table. She felt oddly content and at ease while she listened to him finish off the other male while she lay back relaxing on the table with her eyes closed. It most likely had to do with the fact that the entire building smelled strongly of blood and fear which for her marked a good kill on her part.

When he was finished feeding off of their victim Gaara couldn't help but smirk at the sight of Zukiyo laying down on the table, surrounded by bodies and pools of blood, with a content little smile on her face. Licking the blood off his lips he went over and sat down on the chair next to her. Her eyes opened to look at him before she sat up and he saw a mixture of things in them. The most clear was that she was definitely having fun tonight. As such he wasn't surprised when she sat down on his lap and told him as much. However he was surprised, among other things, at what she did next.

"You are such a messy eater." He stated and wiped the blood off her chin earning a soft chuckle from her as she smiled, "What?"

"I've been sitting here thinking about how we have a lot in common when you think about it and you have just managed to display something that is very different about us." She stated and he raised a brow at her then froze for the second time that night as she leaned forward and licked off the thin trickle of blood that was making its way down his chin, "You wipe off your messes…I lick. Good blood should never go to waste."

She kissed the far corner of his mouth as she looked up at him after saying that. Pleased with his reaction she kissed his nose and got up from him smirking and started to walk out the door. She paused for a moment causing him to snap out of his daze and look at her.

"Are you coming or are you going to sit in this room all night in a daze?" she asked and smiled at him while licking the very last drop of blood off her lips then continued to walk out.

Gaara could not deny that _that_ had been the single most arousing thing anyone had ever done to him. As such he couldn't stop the slightly aroused growl that escaped from his throat while he smirked and got up to follow her out of the building. Gaara knew very well that her actions were most likely all caused by blood lust. Blood lust was known to be a key component in most vampiric sexual encounters. That didn't mean he was complaining though. He still wanted to know what it was about her that made Naruto do what he did but the red headed pureblood decided just then that maybe…just maybe…he wouldn't kill her in the end after all.

**A/N: There you go, another update all done. Next one should be up when get internet which will hopefully be soon.**


	12. Chapter 12: Treason

**A/N: New chapter like I promised! Yay! I won't keep you long. Read, Review, and be merry. All characters either belong to Kishimoto-san, me, or are borrowed on permission from TheFireRose77.  
**

Chapter 12: Treason

Music and chatter filled the air as Kakashi walked down the narrow streets along the canals. The great festival was underway and everywhere he looked he saw masks hiding the faces of each passerby. The silver haired vampire was no stranger to masks but they weren't helping him in his search.

The Ryouma family would be here during the festival he knew. They would never pass up the chance to be here in this water logged city during its biggest event. All he had to do was find them.

Red, gold, green, blue, turquoise, black, and every other color in between covered the faces of those in the streets. Beautiful, painted, and mysterious faces. They flooded every nook and corner of every street and each one of them was different. They came in all shapes and sizes from half masks to full masks; and each one of them took him no closer to what he was seeking than the last. Each beautiful face was a reminder of the dark and terrible reality that awaited him and his world if he did not find this family. As overwhelming as the pressure was he knew he couldn't stop and so he continued to search through the crowds for anything that could bring him to the family. Anything at all.

Then he saw it walking towards him: A head of spun silver hair behind a black lace covered white mask with four green crystal tear drops falling down the cheeks. Two purple eyes met his mismatched ones and Kakashi felt relief for the first time in decades.

"Misora." He stated softly but she walked by him, the black and green skirts of her festival costume rustling as her black gloved hand pressed a piece of paper into his seamlessly before she disappeared into the night as quickly as she came, "Still in mourning…"

Knowing the need for secrecy Kakashi walked on as if nothing had really happened as he looked down and read the paper she gave him. All it had on it was an address that he memorized before tossing the paper into a brazier burning brightly with flames more vibrant than the masks around it. Not even stopping to watch it burn Kakashi walked on down the street. He had found what he was looking for at last among the sea of satin, silk, lace, and glitter...a small glimmer of hope.

Hyuga Hiashi was a rational man, this could never be doubted. He was at times described as stiff, rigid, cold, and his eyes had a tendency to unnerve people. They however had never met the man standing before him.

Masahiro Taizo, the former second vampiric king with light grey eyes like hardened steel. Solid, cold, and razor sharp they bored past the man's reddish brown bangs into Hiashi questioning his every move. The Hyuga couldn't even begin to dream of what those eyes had seen during this man's life. This vampire had ruled alongside the clan's second queen, Kamitsuyo Yuriko, up until she died in battle late into the second great vampiric war and his daughter took the throne. Afterwards he still served as the commanding general for his daughter during the third and last war. Even before ruling he had witnessed more of the vampiric world's history than anyone else. Though he appeared no older than thirty, Taizo was still without question the oldest living vampire on the planet having been born at the very end of the first great vampiric war, the one that brought the Kamitsuyo clan into power.

War had wrought this man's life like a blacksmith does a blade. In many ways Masahiro Taizo _was_ a blade. Masterfully skilled in the ways of war and destruction this vampire's very name was feared throughout the world just as much as it was respected. As such Taizo was invaluable to the clan…to Zukiyo.

However, as necessary as this visit was, this was not going to be easy. Ever since his daughter's death Masahiro Taizo dealt less and less with the clan. Then when the twin princesses were born he withdrew into an exile of sorts only visiting once every few years before he stopped coming altogether.

Hiashi could guess at the main reason. Zukiyo was named after Taizo's daughter, resembled her in almost every way, and took after her in personality as well. It had to hurt this once great king to even be around her, but it had to hurt even more to know what her sister was doing to her and _would_ do to her.

"Taizo-sama…" he started.

"No." was the only response he got from the great elder before he tried shutting the door in the Hyuga elder's face.

Hiashi bit back all his clan's upbringing as he forced the door to stay open with his foot and the palm of his hand. He was raised to rule his own clan and serve the Kamitsuyo clan without question. Still he found himself questioning everything for the past three decades or so. Now he was doing it again as he looked up defiantly into his former king's eyes terrified. Not terrified of _him_ though. Hiashi was terrified of what would become of the world if Taizo did not help.

"_Listen_ to what I have to say first." Hiashi stated, almost hissing in irritation, "I wasn't sent by the queen."

"Fine." Was the only new response he got as the much older vampire stepped away from the door to allow the Hyuga entrance.

Praying he could convince this man to help them Hiashi stepped inside and forced back his fear.

"It's been decades, Kakashi...sit, sit." The older sliver haired man stated to the younger after he had entered a small flat off one of the city's canals and was greeted by none other than Ryouma Hiryu, "Mi told us she saw you on the bridge. Never really believed it to be as notorious a meeting place as they say…now I'm a bit more convinced."

"Where are Misora and Sumire?" Kakashi asked only to be answered almost immediately as they both walked in, Misora now without her mask and costume but still in an outfit of mostly black, and Sumire carrying a plate of cookies, "It is good to see you all again."

"Likewise, dear, cookie?" Sumire asked as she held the plate out to him smiling hopefully and he took one before speaking, knowing all too well her hope was not for him possibly taking one of her cookies but for news of her beloved granddaughter.

"Yukiko, has gone completely mad." He stated, knowing that there was no easy way to say what he had to, "She planned to have Zukiyo murdered at the immortal's prison where she was to serve a sentence for murdering the ambassador of another clan…even though Zu was technically in the right."

The masked vampire watched the hope die in Sumire's purple eyes as well as those of her daughter and the dark eyes of her husband. There was no questioning the fact that they loved the exiled princess. It tore them apart to even suspect that harm had come to Zukiyo.

"However, before this could take place Neji and Hinata escaped with her. Zukiyo is alive."

"Thank the gods…" Sumire breathed, clutching at her heart as she let out a sigh of relief, and her husband pulled her close to him in a comforting hug.

Misora's relief was just as evident as she sunk down to the small couch while her eyes flooded with that relief. Kakashi hated to have let this family even think the worst for a moment but there was no other way he could have put it without making the danger seeming less than it was. They sensed this however and Kakashi could see the next question in all of their eyes.

"Where is she?" Taizo asked as he sat down across from his unwanted guest.

"We don't know Taizo-sama. My daughter and nephew did not tell anyone where they were going to take her." The Hyuga admitted.

"A good idea knowing Yukiko's violent means of trying to get what she wants."

"Indeed…she's tried questioning everyone. When she doesn't get the information she wants she lashes out. Nori-sama was rendered immobile for 3 days after she tried to get information out of him and Kurenai-sama…he shielded her."

"Why?"

"She's pregnant." Hiashi stated and saw the shock momentarily flood the former king's eyes.

Hiashi knew it wasn't over Kurenai's state but over the fact that Yukiko was gone far enough to lash out at a pregnant woman. Still that was only the tip of the iceberg so to speak, and Hiashi knew he had to make the former king realize just how bad things really were under Yukiko.

"Taizo-sama, the queen…is…insane. The dementia that members of the clan suffer from when they do not feed properly has set in her mind permanently." The Hyuga stated, knowing that this would not be easy to hear…still it had to be said regardless, "Yukiko is mentally unfit to rule. She is destroying the clan and the government. If something is not done soon there will be a collapse…then war."

"So you want her sister to rule instead." The former king stated as he didn't need to ask, he already knew the answer.

"She was born for this, Hiryu." Kakashi stated to the Ryouma elder.

"Is it what is best for her though? As the queen she will be targeted by everyone, lusted after by every man wishing to be king, and potentially used as a pawn by the council." The man argued back and Kakashi could only wish he had remembered to watch for Hiryu's infamous temper.

"Zuzu is not such a fool as to let herself be used like that." Misora intervened, always the mediator of the family, "Pa…if the government fails because of Yukiko, Zukiyo will be hunted down and targeted even more because of her relation to the clan. As for the king detail…you know how she is. The world will be lucky if she ever finds a man she likes enough not to kill."

"Still…it's not going to be easy." Her father stated.

"It still must happen." Kakashi replied, "She will need help with it…she needs her family. The council needs you to find her. You are somehow able to move without Yukiko or…her husband…knowing about it."

"That will take time…" Sumire stated, "It's difficult to find someone that does not want to be found in a world this large."

"We will find her." Misora stated plainly and yet Kakashi could hear that determination in her voice, "It may take time but we will find her. We have to before Yukiko does."

"Find her first." Taizo stated, "Then maybe I will help you with this…rebellion."

The former king said the word almost distastefully. Hiashi couldn't really say he was surprised. As a former king it was nearly built into Masahiro Taizo to be loyal to this clan. Still, the fact that he said maybe and didn't kill the Hyuga the second he mentioned a rebellion was a promising development.

"You know very well I cannot go find her myself or look for her. Yukiko has almost every one of my movements watched. I cannot even visit what few friends I have left without Yukiko calling me and demanding to know why I am going somewhere." He remarked with a scornful tone to his words, "It's infuriating and the main reason I can't go find her myself."

"We understand that, Taizo-sama. We decided to find the Ryoumas and have them find her. They're the only ones that can move around without the queen and king knowing."

"They've always been good at moving around unseen. They will find her. When they do and you are aware of it come back to talk to me again. In the meantime try not to let this rebellion be discovered. It may be for the best in the end but right now and until Zukiyo is on the throne…this is still treason." The once great king reminded Hiashi.

"Sometimes, during times of great and desperate need, treason is the only answer." Hiashi replied firmly and received a nod in response, "I need to go now before Yukiko wonders where I am."

"Go. If she asks you were questioning me about Zukiyo's whereabouts. I did not know on the basis that there is no reason Zukiyo would ever come to me for help." Taizo stated, a carefully hidden yet still palpable sadness to his voice, "We have never been close enough for her to do such a thing. Now go."

The Hyuga elder nodded as he left and returned to the clan's ancestral manor to continue his duties. Fear still flooded the deepest parts of his soul but he hid it all the same. If anyone noticed he was afraid they would ask questions…and questions coming from those still loyal to the queen were dangerous. Fear was a weakness in most eyes, even his at times, but right now fear was one of the main things that were keeping him alive in these times. Fear forced him to remain cautious and rethink every step he took before he took them. Fear made him calculate how to proceed with this rebellion, and it was fear, fear for the future of the immortal world, which made him pray Kakashi had been successful. Only then would he allow himself to hope.

"Hope…" Sumire stated softly as she and her family watched Kakashi leave, "We have hope."

"So do they." Hiryu stated as he closed the curtains and sighed, "Hope for a better future with a new queen."

"The rightful queen. Yukiko is unfit to rule. She proved that all the more when she dared to marry that murderous…_bastard_ Yoko." Misora spat angrily as she stared into the fire, her purple eyes ablaze with a fire of their own and her hand resting idly on her stomach as she sat on the couch, "We must find Zuzu and start praying _now_ that she finds someone worthy of her to be her king. That damned council is not taking things into perspective. They might somehow get rid of Yukiko but there's still…_HIM_ to consider. He will never just step aside, not from the title, not from the power, and _NEVER_ from this family. He will force the clan by-laws to be enacted."

Hiryu growled audibly at that thought, and so did Sumire. Not one of them wanted that monster anywhere near their little girl. Still they knew there were only two options considering him: Kill him; or pray Zukiyo found a mate before assuming the throne.

"You can't for one moment let us relax and rejoice that those imbeciles have finally realized what we've known all along." Hiryu stated slightly grumpy with his daughter, "Can you?"

"No, because if we lose sight of what else must be done…everything is pointless." She answered as she stared into the fire still.

"Misora..." Sumire started, worried about her daughter a bit, she knew the look in those eyes all too well.

"I am fine, Ma." Her daughter stated then rose from the couch, "All I'm saying is that I fear for our little Zuzu if she does not find someone worthy of her. You know just as well as I do how that damned council is. Even if, by some miracle of the gods, Yoko dies…they will still force Zukiyo into marrying someone of _their_ choosing to be king. Zu will _never_ let herself be used but…there is only so much she can do by herself. She _needs_ a king."

"She needs her family." Sumire interjected, "That way we can better protect her against them."

"If she lets us." Hiryu added thoughtfully, "She's always been untamable, uncontrollable, and free-willed."

"That's why she needs a king of her own choosing, Pa. She needs to find someone that will love her for who and what she is: a gypsy and a princess…a _queen_ and will support her through this. We're her family, yes, but she can't lean on us for everything."

"She has to learn how to trust first, Misora. Zu…she hasn't let anyone in since…it happened." Misora's mother remarked.

"He ripped her heart to pieces during the worst time of her life…if she lets anyone in her heart or _near_ it, it will be a miracle." Her father stated and Misora could only nod as he was right.

"Then we should start praying and hoping for someone strong enough to break down her walls." Misora stated and sighed, "How is the rest of the family? What do they know?"

"Aziza of course still despises Yukiko's every breath for her new laws. Chi does as well, although the both of them…well you know how they are." Sumire stated of her adopted sister and sister's granddaughter, two proud yet noble women raised in and among the palaces of a desert flanked river delta, "Yukiko hasn't taken to questioning them yet, thank the gods, not that they know anything. If they did they would have let us know. Chi is thinking of moving soon though. She's getting bored of where she is so…"

"She wants some new prey." Misora stated a bit amused, she knew her childhood friend's habits very well, "Where is she moving?"

"She hasn't decided yet. Your father suggested tossing a knife at a map to help her decide. Chi instead decided that she'd go wherever she could cause the most trouble while still remaining as far away from Yukiko as possible."

"That sounds like something Chi would say and do. Who knows, if we're lucky and fate is on our side, maybe she'll help us find Zu." Misora stated as she looked at the fire still and her mother spoke again before going back to the kitchen.

"We can only hope."

**A/N: Yep the chapter is over. One of those ones where we get an update from the rest of the world. Zu and Gaara and the others will return in the next chapter I promise. That will be out as soon as I can get it out. Leave me some feedback to let me know how I'm doing.**


	13. Chapter 13: Trust

**A/N: Here is the next chapter. Some Zu and Gaara time like I know you all want…well it's not entirely what you want because you're not always going to get what you want…especially with me because I'm evil. Read on and see what it is and leave me some feedback. **

Chapter 13: Trust

Dawn. The accursed harbinger of day flooded the valley with a dim yet ever brightening light beyond the specially tinted windows of the house while Gaara sat watching. He would be forced to shut the drapes soon regardless of the special windows as it would be too bright for him to stand. For now he sat in a chair somewhere in the North wing of the great house thinking.

The past few weeks had taught him many things about the female he spent so much time with. Merciless when killing, yet capable of a certain tenderness that even he found endearing, Zukiyo somehow managed to be the main occupant of his thoughts these days. More and more often than he'd like to admit Gaara was finding that there were certain things he liked about her other than she was a highly attractive, blood thirsty, female of his species.

Among those things was her smile. She had many different ones, from psychotic to charming, but he liked them all. They suited Zu in a way he never thought possible for a person. He had witnessed her frown on several occasions and couldn't help but think that it seemed so out of place on her. It surprised him when he actually admitted to himself that he much preferred Zu happy and smiling.

He had known from very early on that he liked her personality. It was different from the others he dealt with nightly. She was charming, that couldn't be denied, and had no fear of him. Almost everyone Gaara had ever met was afraid of him if they were weaker than him yet Zukiyo wasn't. This of course confused him at first but over the months she had been with them Gaara learned he liked that she had no fear of him. This also surprised him when he admitted it.

It also surprised Gaara when he admitted to himself that he liked it when she sat in his lap. Whether it was because she was so warm or because she wasn't afraid of him Gaara found that he enjoyed it. He would still voice a complaint but his heart wasn't in it as it had been before.

He couldn't deny that she was starting to get to him but he was getting to her too. There was a slight noticeable difference in her when she was with him, especially when she sat on his lap or was otherwise close to him, which made him believe that Zu was starting to like this as much as he did. Gaara wasn't sure how he knew it but he could somehow sense that the female felt more comfortable around him than others. His night wasn't complete if she didn't seek him out in her search for company.

The light filled the room to an unbearably bright level forcing him to get up and pull the drapes shut before he sat back down in his seat to relax. His black rimmed eyes had just closed when he heard the familiar sound of footsteps on the wood floors. They were tired and almost shuffling as they came ever closer. The red head caught the person's scent and opened his eyes.

"What is it, Zu?" he asked as he turned his eyes on her and watched her walk closer.

Wrapped in a blanket and in PJs the female rubbed at one of her eyes tiredly and yawned as she shuffled up to him. He wasn't expecting it yet wasn't terribly surprised when she sat down in his lap.

"Couldn't sleep," she mumbled tiredly as she curled up into his lap and laid her head on his shoulder as she cuddled into him and his arms wrapped around her of their own accord, "Comfy…"

_This_ surprised him. Not that his arms wrapped around her, he had long since admitted to himself that he enjoyed holding her for some reason beyond his ability to understand. It was that she had cuddled into him in an almost…affectionate manner as she curled up against him. Then again she was half asleep and her guard was down meaning she was apt to do things she otherwise never would.

"I'm not your bed, Princess." He stated as he glanced down at her half lidded light grey eyes.

"Comfy…warm." She mumbled again as her eyelids drooped down a bit more while she cuddled into him more and Gaara realized she was drifting asleep.

"Zu…you should get to bed." He stated and immediately felt her fingers latch onto his shirt.

"Comfy." She stated once again, almost as if she was pleading for him to let her stay, and fell asleep unintelligibly murmuring softly.

He was shocked to say the least. This was something entirely new for her as Zu never let her guard down around him so much. Still he wasn't going to protest about it. In some strange way, he realized, this pleased him. In what way he was not sure. Looking down at her he watched her breath steadily and slowly in her slumber as he found himself content with this although confused. What had caused her to do this he did not know since usually she used Neji as a pillow. Either the Hyuga wasn't home or Gaara had just become her new favorite. Either way Zu was there in his arms asleep.

It amazed him in a way. When awake she was a teasing, seductive, bloodthirsty killer but when she was asleep a whole different side of her came to surface. Gaara couldn't deny that there was a certain sweetness about her as she cuddled into him and slept while gripping his shirt. It was endearing and cute to him in ways he just could not deny or understand.

Maybe she was making him soft and that's where all this was coming from, but at that moment the red head found that he didn't really care. A piece of her curled dark brown hair fell into her face making her nose twitch in a way that made him smile softly before he gently brushed it back behind her ear as he thought.

He still wanted to discover what it was that Naruto knew about her that he did not. As for why Naruto thought that Zu was worth his time, Gaara had figured that out on his own a few days past. That reason was simply that Zu and he were compatible and seemed to balance each other. She calmed him in a way and he calmed her. He wasn't sure what exactly he felt for her if anything but he didn't think he could kill her in the end…he would miss her too much.

At the very least, he decided, Zukiyo was a friend and he valued her company and even craved it at times. For one so accustomed to being alone Gaara found that he didn't mind being with her so frequently. Perhaps he was more attached than he'd like to admit, but with her trusting him enough to sleep where she was Gaara didn't care. A rare smile crept up on his face as he felt her nuzzle her head into the crook of his neck while he dozed off himself, making a decision that contradicted his former intentions towards her. As he decided this and fell asleep he was unaware of her dreaming.

_Wind chimes rang out softly in the distance as she ran through the garden of her childhood home. Other than that and the soft sound of the wind rustling through leaves the world was silent. Barefoot she ran down the stone worked path searching for something. _

"_Zukiyo." A voice called out to her from somewhere within the garden's walls._

_She ran towards it, her grey eyes searching desperately for she knew not what or who. All she knew was she needed to reach it. _

"_Zu…Zu…Zukiyo." Zu heard a voice call to her again she ran even faster towards it, "Zu…Zu…"_

_Running as fast as she could along the path in the garden Zu searched for the source of the voice calling out to her then fell as the ground disappeared around her in that all too familiar dream and she screamed until she felt a hand wrap around her wrist and pull her back up to solid ground. She caught a familiar scent as it did but couldn't place it as her surroundings shifted to something else…still she caught sight of something red blurring in her vision before it did._

Sometime later Zukiyo woke up feeling slightly disoriented as she didn't quite remember where she was. When she felt a pair of arms slightly tighten around her she recognized the scent that filled her every breath: Gaara, and looked up at him. He was asleep. Her thoughts immediately drifted from questioning how she arrived in her current location to how adorable and innocent Gaara looked while sleeping.

"_How could anyone be afraid of him when he's like this?_" she thought with a small and tender smile until she realized what she was doing which forced her to think about it.

More and more Zu found herself sitting on him like this from just the desire to be close to him. Slowly she was starting to understand why that was. For some reason unknown to her she felt a sense of safety when near him. It confused her since she knew very well that Gaara was dangerous, could kill her at any moment, and only wanted to get what information he wanted from her before most likely killing her…or at least he did. Recently she'd been noticing a slight change in his interactions with her. They were less hostile and there was something else in his eyes at times when they went about their usual routine.

Zukiyo was not entirely sure what it was but she knew it meant she was letting him get too close. She was letting her guard down too much around him. She was…she was trusting him with things and with herself. It had to end.

"_It's too dangerous. You're losing control of your own emotions, Zu, it's time to end it. Any closer and you'll be too emotionally invested in something that will never work…_" She told herself as she looked over the red head's sleeping face, "_Still…look at him. He's so…sweet looking almost. That and you tried already to stay away from him and failed. What the Hell is this? You are Kamitsuyo Zukiyo. You can handle it. Tease him, flirt if you want, be friendly but that's it. Nothing more. It can never go any farther than that._"

It was hard to convince herself of this however. The exiled princess did not know why that was exactly, only that she didn't really believe herself. Every cautious fiber in her was screaming at her to stop everything involving Sabaku no Gaara immediately, but…she couldn't. Not while sitting there cuddled into the lap of this sleeping vampiric lord as he looked so incredibly at peace.

"_Pull away, Zukiyo. You're dangerously close to making a very big mistake…you remember what happened the last time you let your emotions rule. You have no reason to think that this time will be any different and you _know_ Gaara wants to get information out of you more than anything so stop this foolishness and move._" She once again told herself but instead felt the male's arms tighten around her slightly in his sleep almost as if his subconscious could read her thoughts, "_A little longer…shouldn't make _that_ much of a difference. After this though you must distance yourself from him...oh but gods he is so warm and comfy…and so cute right now. No, no, no, no, stop this thinking. He may be cute and attractive but you know you can't act on it. It's too risky._"

Risk. So much risk involved in every little detail of her life right now. She hated it so much. All Zu really wanted was to be free. The closest she'd gotten to that while being in exile was…with him. He pretty much let her do as she pleased since it seemed to please and amuse him. Still she couldn't _really_ trust Gaara.

The gypsy smiled a bit as the red headed male's nose twitched a bit in his sleep. She found it cute in a way and gave in to an urge as she kissed his cheek before resting her head back down on his shoulder until he woke a short time later.

"Still using me as a bed…" was the first thing out of his mouth, trying to come off as irritated but Zu heard the amusement underneath that feigned tone of irritation.

"Mmhmm." She confirmed as she got comfy just to annoy him a bit out of nothing but habit, "You know you don't mind…you probably like it and are just trying to lie to yourself about it."

The red head looked at her remembering the decision he reached last night. He knew Zukiyo had to trust him to some extent and favor him for her to have fallen asleep on him but what he wanted to know was how much she trusted him and favored him. Gaara knew for certain that he couldn't kill her anymore as he looked at her. Something about her and the way she interacted with him made him feel…things…and he liked it. After all he liked a great many things about Zukiyo, this was just one more thing to add to that list, and he was not going to lie to himself about it. Of course that part might just be out of a desire to prove her wrong…

"I do like it. You're very warm…" he admitted to her, acting on what he decided last night: take Kankuro's advice by being nice and to just see what would happen if he was completely honest with her.

Zukiyo blinked a bit. She wasn't sure of what to make of what he just said. He just admitted to liking…this. So many mixed feelings erupted in her that it confused her. Expectedly it worried her she had let him get to close to her and had gone too far with teasing him, and yet unexpectedly…it pleased her.

"_Zukiyo…don't you dare do what I think you're starting to do. It is dangerous…besides he still doesn't know what you _are_. Do you really think he'll treat you the same after he learns the truth? Do you think he's going to be happy about it?_" she asked herself as she felt herself ever so slightly lean against him more as his arms teasingly pulled her closer.

"Is there a problem with that…Princess?" the red head asked teasingly and wickedly.

"I have been spending too much time around you…" Zukiyo stated.

"Well that's your own fault. If you don't want me to pick up your habits…don't spend so much time with me." Gaara stated, teasing her really, and released her, "Now, I have things to attend to today so you need to get up off of me."

"I would have done so sooner if you let go of me sooner." Zu stated and got up off of his lap, "If it impedes your schedule so much I won't do it again."

With that Zu walked away leaving Gaara confused. She had honestly sounded irritated with him. Little did he know that it was just Zukiyo trying to find any reason at all for her to stay away from him.

Zukiyo was a princess. Yukiko had declared her stripped of her title but any idiot knew that the title of Heir Apparent could _never_ be stripped. That meant that Zu still held her title…and that what Gaara thought, that she had no titles, was a lie. Even though she had all the reason in the world to hide her titles from him Zu still knew she couldn't expect him to accept her for what she was when he _did_ discover the truth. Therefore it was just better for her to pull away from him…before she made that same mistake again.

"_No matter how much you think you can trust him, Zu…he will hurt you in the end when he finds out what you are. You are a princess, the Heir Apparent, and an exiled royal. He is part of the vampiric nobility due to his strength, yes, but…there is no reason for you to think he'll continue to treat you the same as he does now when he discovers the truth._" She told herself as she walked to her room, "_It's…it's better this way. Trust is leaving yourself vulnerable and you cannot be vulnerable if you are to survive…because he will only disappoint you. You know that is a fact, they all disappoint you in the end, so end it. Stay away…before you fall any deeper._"

**A/N: Yeah the next chapter…I give you all some fluff and then TEAR IT ALL DOWN LIKE THE ESSENCE OF PURE EVIL. *cough* ahem…excuse me…Review and such. Next chapter will be out soon…MAYBE, if I'm feeling generous it will reveal who hurt our vampiric princess.**


	14. Chapter 14: Confusion & Acceptance

**A/N: Here's the new chapter. That's all I'm saying. Read and Review.**

Chapter 14: Confusion & Acceptance

She walked right by him…again. Not even a nod in greeting or recognition that he was there. It was like he was invisible and didn't exist. He felt so confused. So confused as to why she was doing this…again. Once again he found himself racking his brain for any clue to what caused her to go back to this blatant ignoring of his existence when just the night before she followed him around, hugged him like a tease, sat on his lap out of habit, and…smiled at him in that way he lo-liked best. Once again he found no answer as he watched her walk away…and once again he went out to see to his nightly business alone.

Gaara found it hard to focus the past few weeks because of this. He just didn't understand what was going on. Ever since that day she fell asleep on his lap Zukiyo had been torturing him with her indecision on whether or not she wanted to be near him. That night she ignored him, refused to speak to him, walked away from him whenever he came in the room, and tried her hardest to look past him. That went on for multiple nights. Days and nights of an aching confusion as to why Zu left…even if she was still right there she was gone in a way. Gone from him and it left him trying to figure out _what_ it was that made him _feel_ like this.

The horrible part of it, in his mind at least, was that every time he felt close to an answer there she was again. There she was by his side with that smile, those eyes, and that _look_ he couldn't quite place…and he forgot to wonder what it was that made him miss her so much when she was gone. Why did he need to wonder that when she was right there sitting on his lap and talking to him like _she_ had missed _him_ just as much as _he_ had missed _her_? Still the next night would come and she'd be gone again. That's what made this past month torture. The roller coaster of highs to lows, here to gone, and missing her so much to…something he couldn't name when she was with him. He had no idea what it was, but he liked it.

Things seemed less miserable and not as dull when she was around. Zukiyo was…she…she _brightened_ things. There was something about this gypsy of a woman that when she walked into a room it lit up and even outside…when she was with him things seemed brighter. It was like every night had a full moon in the sky brightening the dark, miserable, and cold world he'd grown so used to. She was a warmth filled little ball of brightness that he just couldn't get out of his head.

It was maddening that this woman was the last thing on his mind before he fell asleep and was the first thing he woke up thinking about as he wondered which version of Zu he would get that night. The one that ignored him and seemed ten degrees colder and dimmer or the one that was bright, warm, and seemed to want to be near him more than anything?

Going about his business Gaara just couldn't understand any of this. He wanted to understand why Zu was doing this. He knew very damn well it wasn't for her amusement. That much he knew because he could _see_ that in her eyes the few times he managed to make eye contact. There was a change in them when Zukiyo was trying to ignore him. Her eyes were…darker, harder, colder, and hurt. So why? Why was she doing this? Why was she hurting herself doing this? Why did it hurt her at all? Why did he care so much about the answer?

That question plagued the jade eyed vampire's mind just as much as why she was doing this. Why did he care so much about it? Why did it bother him? Why did he miss her so fucking much when she was gone? Gaara wasn't_ completely_ ignorant of the answer, though: He cared for her. To some extent he knew that he cared for her more than he cared for most others. Still when he thought about and admitted this it brought him back to the first question of why she was doing this and to another question: How much _did_ he care? Then to two other questions: He cared for her, but this was different somehow than how he cared for others…so…what is this and why is he feeling it? Last of all was the same question that played thorough out his head every time he began wondering about all of this: Did she feel all of this too?

Why was this so _hard_? She just didn't understand. She knew she had to do this.

Still as Zukiyo slid down against the door to her room until she was sitting on the floor with her back against it she felt herself craving him. She did. She craved his presence, his scent, his voice, his touch, and that look his eyes that reminded her so much of herself at times…confused, reaching, pleading, trying so hard to understand why and what all of this was.

"Zu, you have to stay away…you know you do. You can't trust him. You don't trust him. You don't trust him. You _can't_ trust him so…so don't even…try to." She told herself, saying it out loud hoping that hearing it would make it truer and easier to accomplish, it didn't though and she sighed, "It's a risk…trusting Gaara...you know this, Zu. So why do you want to so badly?"

She had to think about this. This was the question that plagued her mind so much this past month: Why? Why did she _want_ to trust him? Why did she keep doing this to herself…and to him? Why did she care about how this affected him? It scared her…not because she couldn't find the answer but because of the answer she _did_ find.

"No…no, no, no, no, no. You do not." She told herself as she got up and went over to her couch and laid down on it running her hands through her hair as she thought, "_Yes you do. You feel it, Zu. You feel it every time you go back, every time his arms wrap around you, every time he says your name, every time he looks at you with those eyes…you feel it._"

She felt trapped in this cycle of denial and acceptance of what she felt. Trapped and caged. The gypsy got up from the couch and went out onto her balcony desperately needing fresh air. Breathing in the cool and crisp night air Zukiyo let her mind clear. Still, thoughts of him invaded her mind again.

"_Give in already, Zu. You know you want to. Give in. Go to him, tell him, and tell him the truth. Gaara isn't…him. Gaara is a completely different person and you know that._" She fought with herself, "_Think about it. You tried to stay away. You tried to stop yourself from falling and you couldn't. You keep going back to him. Why? Because you-_"

"No…I'm…I am not ready to give in and admit _that_ yet." Zu said out loud, "Great now I'm talking to myself like a lunatic. Still…who else can I talk about _this_ to? Everyone in this house seems to either want me to do it or don't want me to. There is no one to talk this out with but myself. I need to stop saying this out loud…"

Zukiyo sat down on the stone tiles of her balcony and leaned against the railing as she retreated into her own thoughts. She sat and thought about what the purpose of this was. This process of staying away from the red headed male she had grown so close to.

She originally did this as a way to keep herself safe…but safe from what? Having her heart broken again? Not that she was admitting anything of that nature but what was the point of guarding herself against that? All she was doing was shutting herself off and pushing him away. In retrospect that was the last thing she wanted. Looking deep into herself, the exiled princess searched for answers, and found them.

"Well, Gaara, some news has made its way to me." Kankuro stated as he sat down at the table in the kitchen.

Gaara looked at his older brother, silently waiting for him to go on as he sat down. The red head had returned from his night's business only a few minutes earlier. It was early for him to return but it was too dangerous for him to stay out any longer with his mind as distracted as it was.

"We're going to have a new elder in the city. One is moving into the old Vincinetti Estate. More and more of our kind are moving here out of nothing but a desire to get as far away from the Kamitsuyo Clan's headquarters. I have news from there as well. Our…'queen' has enacted another insane law…"

"What is it _this_ time?" Gaara found himself asking, he almost dreaded the answer.

The current queen Yukiko was slowly bringing the immortal races to the brink of ruin. Their government was starting to crumble and fail. Small inner clan civil wars were breaking out all over the world, territorial disputes were becoming an increasingly larger problem, death tolls were mounting as more and more hunter groups appeared and were allowed to go about their ways, slavery was reported to be on the rise for the first time in millennia, and so much more that it made even Gaara cringe and worry about what the future would hold.

"I'm not exactly sure…but…it caused the werewolves to completely deny the Kamitsuyo clan's right to rule the immortal government and break away from it as well. Rumor is that the demonic nobility will soon do the same. The world is slowly coming just as unraveled as the queen's mind." Kankuro stated and ran his hand through his hair, "Then...there's what the… king is doing."

"Hm?" Gaara asked as something about the trepidation in Kankuro's voice made the red head worry a bit.

"He's sanctioned various groups of hunters to…hunt down clan fugitives." Kankuro stated and looked his brother in the eyes, "One in particular."

"I see." Was his brother's only verbal reply.

Kankuro watched his brother mask a slight worry that Kankuro noticed anyway. This was hard for the elder brother to do. He knew why Zukiyo was being hunted down like this, she was the princess, but he couldn't tell Gaara that. He didn't like keeping his little brother in the dark like this but it wasn't Kankuro's secret to tell. Zu had to tell him herself or…or Gaara would never forgive her for lying to him when he cared for her like Kankuro _knew_ he did.

He _knew_ Gaara cared for her. Everyone in their household knew it and could see it. The red head treated her differently from others. Not because Gaara sensed that Zu had a title but because he cared for her. He let the exiled princess get away with so much, was more of a gentleman to her than others, and with her showed them all that he could be gentle, understanding, and could find peace. Kankuro saw it, Temari saw it, Naruto did, Hinata did, and even Neji could see it even while he did not wish to. Gaara felt something for this woman that he had never felt for anyone else. Everyone could see it and Kankuro supposed that's why it bothered him so much that Gaara himself seemed to try so hard to keep hiding it and denying it to himself.

"Gaara…" he started, tired of watching his brother skirt around this, "Gaara I know you care about her to some extent."

"And? She's chosen to ignore I exist. What am I supposed to do?" his little brother stated and went and poured himself a glass of blood, he was obviously irritated…although Kankuro was still pleasantly surprised Gaara didn't outright deny it or growl threateningly at him.

"She doesn't ignore you _all_ the time." Kankuro stated, having a good idea of _why_ Zu was doing this…he just couldn't tell Gaara that.

"No…but she goes right back to ignoring me after what? A few hours?" Gaara snapped back and Kankuro saw something else that both made him hope and made him feel for his little brother: Gaara was hurt and confused.

It wasn't often that Kankuro saw those two things in his brother…when he saw any emotion at all other than anger and discontent. His little brother was struggling with these emotions and what he felt for Zukiyo. That meant he realized he felt something for her but at the same time it was causing him a certain amount of pain. It hurt Gaara that Zukiyo was ignoring him and seemingly trying to push him away.

"Do you have _any_ idea why? You two were fine last month." Kankuro asked while thinking: "_This would be _so_ much easier if I could tell him she was a princes without him losing his temper about it…no…it still has to come from her. She has to tell him not me…but I want to so bad._"

"Not a clue." Gaara stated and drank from his glass as Naruto walked in looking slightly irritated as he went straight to where he kept the ramen.

"The queen is a fucking idiot." Naruto stated as he started the process of making ramen, his ultimate comfort food, with his eyes a furious red orange color, "I just got off the phone with Kiba. His mother is pissed, even over the phone that lady is _scary_, and he isn't too happy either but he's still actually being responsible and trying to stop his mother from outright declaring war on the entire vampiric race."

"Damn…" Gaara stated and drank more from his glass…the world really was falling apart.

"Damn doesn't come close." Naruto said as he waited for his ramen to get done, "Doesn't she realize what she's doing? I don't understand your fricken hierarchy but even _I_ understand that if the immortal government fails war will break out between people fighting over what power is left…and that war will inevitably draw in the humans. The entire world will go to hell because of Ms. Crazier-Than-the-Mad-Hatter-at-Tea-Time!"

"Naruto…I seriously don't think she realizes what she's doing." Kankuro stated, "If what we hear is right…she is _way_ past the point of even caring about it. As for the king…he's not really that much better from what little I hear about him."

The Kyuubi only nodded. His mind ran with a number of things. A few of them revolved around why wasn't his ramen done yet, another few around Hinata, and another few around the fact that Zukiyo was the heir to the immortal throne and that it seemed so many believed she'd be a better ruler than her sister…

"_If only Zu had been born first…Zukiyo-hime I mean. Yukiko's younger twin sister._" Kiba had stated to Naruto earlier prompting The Kyuubi to ask if the werewolf knew Zu, "_You could say that. Pretty, tasty, feisty little thing…but…well there isn't a way to describe her really. I haven't seen her in years. I mean, we had some fun back in the day…then again how can you _not_ have fun with _me_? Still that was _before_ a certain asshole did what he did…and if I ever see him I swear I'll bite his fucking ass off for what he did. Anyway, she's my friend. Even my _mom_ respects her and thinks the same…that she'd be a better ruler than her sister not the other stuff. Zu would _never_ have pushed through this new fucking law. No one knows where she is though…I can only hope she's still alive…she _is_ our last hope._"

It bothered Naruto to hear his friend sound so serious about things, it just wasn't like Kiba, and it almost killed him to keep his mouth shut instead of telling the werewolf that Zu was right there with Naruto. However, The Kyuubi knew his task was to keep this exiled princess safe and alive. To do that he had to keep her a secret, though, and yet he knew that he couldn't keep her a secret for much longer. Naruto only hoped that she decided to tell Gaara before he found out some other way.

Gaara walked past the doors to Zu's rooms, pausing only slightly before continuing to his own. So much going on in the world yet he still couldn't get this gypsy out of his head. Sitting down in the chair of his sitting room he tried his best to just get her out of his mind and picked up the book he had been reading, hoping that it would at least distract him from thoughts of her for a short while. However, as he watched Zu enter through the open door, he knew no book would ever be enough.

"Hello." Zu heard him state in greeting and heard the irritation in his voice.

"Gaara…" she started as she approached him and sat herself down in his lap as always, unable to stop herself from doing this, and watched him look at her as he set down his book, "Gaara…I…"

His eyes were just distracting as he quietly looked at her. They maintained that indifferent and uncaring look on the outside but as always Zukiyo could see past that, and past that indifference she saw confusion and an almost broken kind of hurt. Her fingers ran through his hair as she looked into his eyes sadly. She couldn't do this anymore…staying away was too painful for the both of them and he meant too much to her for her to want to cause him pain.

"I've hurt and upset you…" she stated almost ashamedly and hugged him, "I am so sorry."

"You are today," he stated quietly, refusing to hug back or accept this apology, "but what about tomorrow? You'll go back to avoiding me."

"No." she stated shaking her head and hugged him tighter, "Never again. I promise."

"Why did you start this in the first place?" he asked, needing to know, and she looked at him, "Why?"

"I…I don't really have many _close_ friends. I have trust issues. I…never meant to upset you with them…I just couldn't help it." Zu stated to him, unable to bring herself to come out and tell him the complete reason why…still this was a start.

Gaara nodded, accepting and understanding that answer, even though he sensed there was more to it, but was distracted from that as he felt Zu cuddle into him. Apparently he wasn't the only one who had missed this kind of contact. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer ever so slightly, relaxing a bit as he saw her smile a bit at him before she spoke.

"What have you been up to lately? Anything interesting?" she asked, a bright and inquisitive look in her eyes and on her face that Gaara knew well and just now realized he had missed.

"Nothing really. Reading." He answered and watched the look in her eye switch to one which he knew meant she was going to tease him.

"Too busy missing me to do anything else?" she asked teasingly and Gaara looked at her flatly, he wasn't going to admit to that, partially because he wasn't going to out of principle and partially because he knew that for some reason she smiled at these answers more than others.

Zu smiled at him sweetly and in a way that let him know she was only teasing him. This was the reaction he wanted. He had missed her smiles. Next, however, he rolled his eyes at her, just to see how she would respond.

"Alright, I'll stop and behave," She stated and kissed his cheek in a teasing yet affectionate manner before cuddling into him more.

The red head relaxed almost immediately, feeling content and happy with her here in his arms as they talked about what they had both been doing while apart from each other.

"The usual," Gaara stated and Zukiyo nodded knowing what that meant and he looked at her as he pulled her ever so slightly closer still as she lay her head down on his shoulder, "I'm not a bed, princess."

"You're still comfy." He heard her murmur and he nodded knowing all too well that she hadn't been getting much sleep these past few weeks and he found himself asking a question he desired to know the answer to for some time.

"Why do you wake up screaming in the middle of every day?" He asked and she heard an almost worried undertone to his voice that caused her to pick her head up and look at him for a moment in slight shock, "Why?"

"Nightmare. A different version of the same one every night for the past 33 years…I don't sleep much because of it." The exiled princess revealed and watched the red head nod before she lay her head back down on his shoulder, "So, I'm sorry if I fall asleep while-"

"It's alright." Gaara stated cutting her off and once again, barely noticeable to even him, pulled her closer, "Get some sleep if you need it."

This shocked her. It wasn't really like him to do anything of this sort. Still she couldn't say she didn't like it. In fact she found that she loved it. Zukiyo smiled softly as she relaxed against this red headed male who she knew was violent, cruel, and just as blood thirsty as she was. She knew this as she'd witnessed it multiple times. Yet as she felt her eyes start to close as sleep took over her she had one last thought.

"_I know what he is with his enemies and the world…but he's capable of kindness, gentleness, and caring with _me_. He's never hurt me, never betrayed me in the slightest, and he's never lied to me. He's not…he's not Max._"

**A/N: There you go, I've been holed up in my room finishing this up for you guys for awhile now...and I know, yes...I know...who is Max? Well you'll find out when I feel like telling you...which should probably be next chapter. Anyway leave me some feedback, I gotta go out to the outside world where the sun is bright and blinding.**


	15. Chapter 15: Realization Pt 2

**A/N: The next chapter. Not going to say too much other than warn you to expect some more blood and gore than usual in this one. This one is also VERY long compared to my usual chapters but I figured I owed you all a long chapter.**

Chapter 15: Realization Pt. 2

"Sleep well…Princess?" the red headed male asked as he felt Zu murmur and stir, her fingers still clutching at his shirt as her eyes fluttered open.

"Mmmhmm." She smiled sleepily at him and saw the slightest hint of a smile twitch at his lips which made her smile a bit more, "Does that please you in some way?"

"What would you do if I said yes?" Gaara asked as he pulled her closer very noticeably.

He had sat there for the past two hours holding this woman as she slept thinking about what had happened the past month and how he felt during it. It was a sickening roller coaster of high and low emotions. It made him realize many things. First among those things was how important she was to him. Gaara knew very well that he could never harm her regardless of his initial intentions. Zu was…too important to him. The second thing he realized was that, even though he wasn't particularly a fan of emotions, he would much rather feel the high instead of the low emotions. That of course revolved around keeping the pureblooded vampiress currently sitting in his lap cuddled against him happy and, for lack of a better term, _his_. Gaara suspected that Zu wouldn't mind that but he could never be sure about anything this female might do or think.

"What would I do...is that what you'd like to know?" Zu asked as she cuddled him a bit more, noticeably, and he nodded, "Well…I suppose I'd have to…ask where the grumpy bastard I'm so used to dealing with went."

He rolled his eyes at her only to chuckle right after as she smiled at him. Contentment filled him as she once more relaxed against him with her head on his shoulder. Gaara couldn't really see it but he knew she was smiling. He could feel it. However he knew it wasn't going to last as he heard footsteps coming down the hall.

Zu heard them too and went to stand up and remove herself from Gaara's lap, only his grip hadn't loosened.

"Gaara, I don't think you're in the mood to have Kankuro or Naruto picking on you for having me cuddling you." She stated and very lightly nuzzled his nose before she could stop herself.

"Hn. True." He stated and released her so she could sit in the chair right next to him with her feet in his lap as the door opened.

"Zu…I didn't think to find you in here." Kankuro stated pausing for only a moment before continuing on with what he came to say, "There are hunters in the city. One of our subordinates just called it in."

"Human or otherwise and how many?" Gaara asked; this was the first group of hunters to make it that far into their territory in a while.

"Human. Small band of at least six but no more than seven. New from what anyone can tell. They have no idea what territory they've just entered."

"Regardless of whether or not they know what they're getting into hunters of any sort are dangerous." Zu stated and the two men nodded.

"It will be taken care of." Gaara stated and his brother nodded knowing well enough that Gaara had this under control.

"I'll see you later then. Try not to die." Kankuro stated and left the two to continue about his own business and Gaara glanced over at Zu.

"Yes?" she asked and he moved her feet from his lap and stood in front of her offering her a hand, "You want me to come with you I see…"

The exiled princess smiled wickedly and accepted his hand, allowing him to help her, and stood. Zukiyo knew that their relationship had changed in some way and knew that the past month had caused it. Neither one of the two wanted to go through that again. Still as she watched the red headed male smirk just as wickedly as she had and kiss the back of her hand, she was a bit surprised.

"I know how much you enjoy bloodbaths." Gaara stated and watched Zu smile even more wickedly as her eyes gained that blood lusting light in them he knew so well.

"You are such a gentleman sometimes. It's adorable."

"I am not adorable. Now do you want to come?" he asked and watched her smile and nod, "Good."

"I need to change. Blood doesn't really come out of this shirt very well."

"Then go and be quick about it." Gaara urged and she just blinked at him, "Please."

"Much better." Zu smiled and turned to go change leaving her male companion shaking his head.

Not long after that a pair of humans clad in dark clothes and weighed down with the sharp tools of their trade walked through one of the parks on the South Side of town. Everything was quiet in this section of the park save for the slight breeze through the trees and bushes. Too quiet. There was nothing else but the sound of the breeze and their footsteps echoing through the night air. Not even the sounds of the city or any animals that should be in the area. Just an eerie and echoing silence. Then they heard it: a slight metallic creak. Their heads snapped over to the swing set to their left and what they saw chilled their blood.

"Mmm…she was rather tasty…your friend." A red and black clad woman stated as she sat on the swing and chuckled darkly.

Curled dark hair, fair skin, and a hauntingly charming smile she would have been a welcome sight to see if it weren't for the blood dripping down her chin from her red stained lips and the sight of her hands staining the chains that held the swing up with the thick red gore covering them.

"What did you do…you…foul hell spawn?" the one demanded to know until his companion nudged him to look next to the female vampire he was addressing, "Oh God…what did you do to her?"

"Hmhmhmhm…what's it look like?" the woman asked wickedly as she licked the blood from her lips and fingers a bit with razor sharp fangs displayed amongst her smile.

"Oh God…" the other hunter groaned as he looked at the corpse of his former teammate, "You…you…"

"Ripped her eye out, let her scream for a bit, took the other one as well, tore her throat out and then ripped out her heart." The woman stated smiling as she remembered it and shivered delightfully, "It was very fun…and her screams were music to my ears. I haven't had that much fun slaughtering in a while. Aww…you don't look good. Feel sick?"

The two men tore their eyes away from the corpse of the woman and glared disgustedly at the vampiress before them. This was the reason they had to destroy the vampiric race. Man, woman, and even the children…because they would grow and become just as bloody as their parents. The easiest way to end the immortal races was to take out their offspring…and the females that bore them. This female was never going to get the chance to bring hellish, blood sucking, little monsters into this world if they had their way. It would be easily done. There were two of them and one of her. Regardless of her strength they could bring her down easily…or at least that's what they told themselves.

"Now boys…don't go doing something stupid." She stated as she watched them run at her then sighed dramatically and pulled out the sword that their former comrade had hidden in her coat and got up, "You people really need to learn not to run at me…"

With that and before he even knew what happened the hunter watched the vampiress dodge their strike. Before they could react she impaled his teammate on the steel and wrenched it up through his ribcage opening him up before shoving the now dead body onto him. The horrid and rank stench of blood and death filled his nostrils as he fell to the ground with the dead weight on top of him.

"You are too easy." The female stated and took his weapon from him.

"Please…please God no. I have kids." He lied, hoping that her softer female nature would trigger so he could get up and ram his dagger in her heart from behind but…he saw it wasn't going to work.

"Liar..." was the last sound he heard before his head was detached from his body, "Now where has Gaara gone off to…"

"Right here, Princess…" she heard from behind her and turned around to see him walking up, blood dripping from his hands, hair, and chin, "You've had more luck than I have. I only found one."

"And ripped them to pieces I see." Zukiyo observed as he reached her and she leaned against him smiling excitedly up at him.

"Of course." The red head confirmed as he wrapped his arms around her out of habit, as well as a bit of bloodlust induced instinct, and looked behind her, "Nice."

"Child's play." She purred as her arms wrapped around his neck and she licked the blood trickling down his chin off before kissing his jaw earning herself the faintest of pleased growls, "Enjoy that?"

"Obviously." Gaara admitted and wiped the blood off of her chin gently, "We have other hunters to deal with, Zu."

The gypsy smiled and nodded as they detached and cleaned up Zu's mess before going off to find the remaining hunters. Her arm wound into his when he offered it to her before they went. It wasn't long before they spotted the remaining three deeper into the park and so the hunters became the hunted.

As Zu watched her red headed male companion she sat and thought about things. She realized full well what he meant to her and what she wanted from him and couldn't help but see that he wanted it too. Yet she realized that in order to get it and keep it she couldn't avoid the truth any longer. Gaara needed to know what she was: a real princess and not just any princess the Heir Apparent to the throne of the entire immortal world. Still…the act of telling him was much harder to do than just deciding on it. Still before she could let their relationship move on like she wanted she needed to let him know. She only prayed he would accept her afterwards.

The last hunter decided to make a run at her as Gaara ripped the head clean off of the one forcing Zukiyo out of her thoughts and dodge as he struck at her. Then the worst happened: he recognized her.

"You." He stated as his eyes widened and the panic took over in Zu, "Y-aaaagghh.."

Zu didn't even know how she had done it but the next thing she knew she had ripped the man's tongue and throat out so severely she had essentially decapitated him. Panting as the adrenaline abated she forced herself to calm as Gaara walked over to her, a worry in his eyes she had never really seen before.

"Are you alright?" he asked as he helped her up and looked her over.

"I'm fine, Gaara." Zu stated, hiding the small cut on her arm as it healed, and looked up at the blood covered male in front of her, "He just…caught me a bit off guard…"

"He knew you." Gaara stated and brushed her hair back behind her ear as she looked up at him and nodded while leaning into his touch a bit, "He's dead now…and can't tell anyone where you are, princess."

Zu flinched a bit at that. Princess. She had to tell him.

"Gaara…I…" she started, desperately trying to find the right words as he looked down at her.

"Hm?" he asked and wiped some of the blood on her cheek off with his thumb.

"I'm-" she started but his phone rang and cut her off making her jump a little bit which caused him to chuckle a bit before he answered.

"What is it, Neji? Why couldn't they call me themselves? Fine." Gaara stated and hung up and looked down at his dark haired companion, "There's a new elder vampiress moving into the city. She's invited us over to her new house tomorrow night in observance of the old customs. Now what were you going to say?"

"I'm…in complete disbelief at how messy you are." She stated, having lost her nerve during the interruption, and wiped some blood off of his cheek and licked her finger clean and he chuckled.

The princess smiled at him and watched as he smiled down at her, a sight she had only seen a once or twice, and couldn't help but smile more herself. She knew all too well Gaara's non-insane smile was a very rare sight. The last time she had seen it had been when she had managed to make him burst out laughing at something she did to Neji. Neji of course didn't find it as funny but he was much too serious in her opinion. Speaking of Neji, Zu had a few things to say to him once she and Gaara got back. Before that, however, they would have to clean up their mess.

"Please try not to drip blood all over my floor." Naruto stated as he watched the pair walk through the door while he lounged on the couch."

"Hn." Was all he got out of Gaara, who then surprised him by scooping up Zukiyo and walking off.

"What are you up to?" Naruto heard the exiled princess ask.

"This should hopefully lessen the amount of blood that drips onto Naruto's floor. Complaining?"

"Definitely not." She replied and they walked out of hearing.

Naruto blinked. Despite being a Kyuubi Demon, which came with the ability to sense emotions, particularly the negative ones, he still found himself to be surprised. He knew very well that Gaara had fallen for the newest inhabitant of his estate, but was never really expecting to see Gaara so willing to…show it. Something had happened.

"He doesn't want to her to leave again." Temari stated from a doorway and Naruto looked at her, "I know my little brother. He…he refuses to see it but he's a lot like our father…and how he was with our mother. He realizes he feels something for Zu and likes it so doesn't want to her to, in his mind, leave again."

The Kyuubi nodded at her words. They made sense. Gaara wasn't the easiest person to get along with but once you did he was incredibly loyal. Still there was one thing left to deal with before any of them could make conclusions on what Gaara would do with Zu. Her title still had to be made known to him…especially with how things were going in the immortal government.

"Does he know yet?" the eldest Sabaku asked.

"No. He doesn't. Neji told him that she has _no_ titles…and we all know how much Gaara likes being lied to."

"She needs to tell him. Soon. Gaara…could be…she's the Heir Apparent. Any man she chooses as a mate would be king if she assumed the throne. He may or may not like that fact but he should know about it before they go any farther."

"We all realize that, Tem. So does she. Trust me. Zukiyo is far from stupid." Naruto replied, hoping for the best outcome possible from all of this knowing very well that everyone else was hoping the same.

"Gaara…what…" Zukiyo asked as he walked past the door to her rooms towards his.

"We need to bathe."

"And? I have a bathroom in my room to use." She countered and he looked at her flatly and opened the door to his room a bit then nudged it all the way open with his foot.

"Your room has light carpets…mine hides bloodstains much more effectively." He stated simply and she looked at his room.

She had been in his sitting room plenty of times but never his bedroom. It was situated in much the same way as her room except for the color scheme. A rich red colored the walls much as it did in his sitting room, however, where the sitting room's floors were a rich warm cherry wood finish, the floor was carpeted in a much darker color than her rooms were. She couldn't quite place the color but Gaara was indeed correct that it would hide bloodstains much more effectively than hers.

"I see your point…but I have nothing to change into and you can't go into my room for the same reason you say _I_ can't." she countered and he set her down then went to his closet only to return with a red bath robe, "I didn't think of you as the bath robe type."

"I'm not. Naruto bought me for my birthday a few years ago complaining I was too hard to buy for. Then he discovered gift cards with little pandas and raccoons on them which I think you saw. I forgot about this until now." The red head stated and handed her the robe.

At this point she knew she had no real choice but to do as he bid so she accepted the robe and made her way towards his bathroom and went in. As she washed the blood off the exiled princess's mind wandered to her title. Despicable and unwanted thing that it was she still had it and needed to tell Gaara about it. It was something that one needed to tell their significant other.

Stepping out of the shower she dried off a bit and donned the robe he had leant her. Zu wasn't quite sure of _how_ to tell him. She knew there was no perfect scenario, no ideal situation, and no delicate way to do it. However she told him he'd be upset to some degree that he'd been left in the dark. Zukiyo knew that very well and only hoped she wouldn't lose him.

These thoughts occupied her mind so much that it was only when was about to walk out of the room that she realized she had nothing covering her neck. What surprised her about it was that she found she didn't really _care_. Zukiyo knew that Gaara would never harm her. She knew that and realized that she trusted him completely. It made her smile a bit. Still as she opened the door and walked back out to where her red headed vampire lord was she couldn't help but wonder what he would do.

"Shower's all yours." She stated and looked at him only to see him nod as he looked at her and smiled a bit, "What?"

"Nothing." He stated and started walking towards the bathroom then stopped and looked at her again, "Princess."

"Gaara…" she started then promptly decided that maybe right now wasn't the best time to tell him, "Go shower. We'll talk after that. Besides I need to put some clothes on…regardless of how much you might like me not to."

He only chuckled and smirked at her before going into the bathroom.

"Zu, you know the consequences." Neji warned his childhood friend as she sat brushing her hair, "Are you _sure_?"

Neji had knocked on her door just as she finished putting clean clothes on. Since she needed to talk to him about his earlier interruption she had no problem letting him in. Predictably he wasn't too pleased with her decision to tell Gaara of her title.

"Neji-nii-san, I. Am. _Positive_. I am going to tell him. It cannot come from anyone but me." The princess stated and saw the look on the Hyuga's face, "Gaara must not find out from anyone but _me_."

"Why are you doing this? No. Why have you suddenly decided this _now_?"

"I care about him." Zu admitted out loud, "More than I could ever have anticipated. Nii-san…it's been a long time since I cared for _anyone_ in this manner and truth be told something feels different this time. Better."

"What in _any_ Hell makes you believe he feels the same towards you? He doesn't generally care about _any_thing."

"I can see it. I can see that he does care deeply for me. I know he's not lying because he is incapable of lying to _me_. I can read him like a book. He doesn't know what it is, Gods _I_ don't really know what this truly is, but it's there and it's _real_. Gaara is not Max. He's…he's so much more." She stated, idly running the brush through the end of her hair, and looked at Neji, "Please understand, Neji. I…I'm tired of being alone."

"Zuzu…you're not alone. You still have Hinata and me." Neji stated, trying his best to get her to not do this, he knew Gaara's temper was not easily predicted.

"You know very well what I really mean by being alone. My twin sister _hates_ me and wants me _dead_. I have this big, gaping empty space in my soul where I know my family should be but isn't. She cut me off from the world for _thirty three_ years. In the full scope of our immortality it's not that long but for someone like _me_ it is…and two weeks in a tiny little cell not big enough to pace in is an _eternity_. She did that to me, Neji, my own sister."

"I know, Zu."

"You know…but…I've been forced to look back through the years and look at all the things she's done to me. All the times when I could have died and almost have due to what she's done. She's been trying to kill me for years…when all I have _ever_ done is love her. I'm convinced I must have done something heinously wrong somewhere in my life." Zu stated as she continued to brush her hair, "Something other than be a bloodthirsty killer."

"Zu…Yukiko is _insane_. It's not your fault."

"It's not just Yukiko that makes me think that. Look at my life. I reached my teen years to mass a flock of admirers who only wanted my title. My father died and… that blue-eyed charming bastard had to be the first male to come along and find me in my state and then he just uses me because of what I am. No one has ever been interested in _who_ I am…just what." Zu stated quietly at the end, "I know I have you and Hina but I need more, Neji. I need more than the brotherly and sisterly love I get from the two of you. I need someone that…that understands better than the two of you do what it is like to be feared, shunned, and hated. You understand that it hurts me but you don't know what it feels like to the extent that I do. Gaara…does."

"As long as you are sure that this is what you want." The Hyuga sighed in defeat, knowing all too well she was right, "All I want is for you to be safe…and happy. Just make sure you know what you're getting into."

"I have no idea what I'm getting into…that's what makes it fun." Zu stated and smiled at Neji, making him groan mentally before leaving her so she could return to Gaara.

The princess looked at herself in the mirror after Neji left and looked at her neck then pulled the covering off of it. The scar was still there, a jagged bite mark, faint and yet still there. She feared it happening again and yet she knew she didn't have to fear it happening from Gaara. They were vampires so of course at one point he would bite her, it _had_ to happen at one point if she truly wanted him as her mate, but she knew that Gaara would never harm her. As such she made the decision to leave her neck uncovered and went back to him.

The jade eyed vampire watched as his princess entered the room and once again noticed she wasn't covering her neck as usual. Why she hid her neck he still didn't know but he knew well enough that she always had it covered…until tonight. He sat back in his chair as she drew near and then sat in his lap as usual and he saw it: A faint scar on the right side of her neck…a…bite mark. He frowned as he looked up at her causing her to frown and cover the scar with her hand. His arms wrapped around her and pulled her close, trying to silently do his best to comfort her.

"Gaara…" Zu stated and ran her fingers through his hair affectionately, trying so hard to find the courage to tell him the truth, "I'm…I'm alright. It was a long time ago…and I trust you not to do the same."

"Good." He said, leaning a bit into her touch and purred as he pulled her closer.

Gaara was tired with resisting his instincts and desires and it drove him into the realization that he wanted her and had wanted her for a while now. At first he didn't really know what he wanted her for but he knew very well now. Kankuro and Naruto had seen fit to throw her at him as a potential mate and he found himself agreeing with them. He didn't really understand what he felt for her, but he understood well that he liked it and wanted it to continue. More than anything he wanted her to be his. No one had ever looked at him like she did…trusting, tender, warm, and…something he couldn't place. It was foreign to him yet he still liked it. It made his nights so much better than ever before and he did not want to lose that again. She promised though that she'd never ignore him like that again and yet he found her pulling away from him and going over to sit on the couch.

Usually she did this with a teasing, come get me, look in her eyes. This time however something was different. She was nervous.

The exiled heir apparent watched as he stood and walked over to where she sat and sat down beside her. She had to tell him, but how? She had to tell him, she knew that, but being so close to him made it _so_ much harder to do. That _look_ in his eyes made it so much harder to do when all Zu wanted was him. Instinct and desire was urging her to do what she knew she shouldn't…even though she very much wanted to. Zukiyo knew that he could sense it. They were vampires. It was a built in sort of instinct that kicked in when in the presence of the one most compatible with you as a mate. Instinct essentially ruled their lives. Yet she knew she had to resist it.

"Gaara…" she started as he pulled her closer, recognizing that look in his eyes in that moment as a mixture of things…one of them being a sort of instinct driven autopilot.

He was still in there she knew and she knew he understood what he was doing. He would have never given into his own instincts had he not known. He was too stubborn for that.

"Yes?" he asked and rested his forehead against hers.

"I…I need…" she started softly, finding it so difficult to resist instinct when his scent filled her every breath, and nuzzled his nose gently.

"Neji, if you continue pacing you'll wear a rut in my floor." Naruto stated as he flipped through the channels of the TV, "What is wrong with you _now_?"

"Those two are alone in a room." The Hyuga stated only to receive a questioning look from the Kyuubi.

"How is this different from every time before when they were alone?"

"Vampires are all instinct and blood you moron." Neji snapped and Naruto glared at him, eyes a dangerous red orange color until Hinata walked in.

"Gaara and Zu are so compatible that their instincts, once they're no longer able to resist them, will drive them together…physically. Instinct in that case is…" she explained and her cousin finished.

"Impossible to resist."

She was going to go insane at this rate. Trying so hard to find the right words to say to him, to tell him, yet finding her mind unable to form any coherent thoughts as he pulled her closer still and gently, more gently than she ever thought him capable of, placed his hand on the side of her neck and jaw stroking her cheek with his thumb. She froze stiff for a second out of instinct, his hand against the bare skin of her neck a foreign sensation, and saw his eyes change ever so slightly as they switched out of that autopilot.

Still he did not pull away as she expected. Instead his grip on her neck and jaw changed in a way as he nuzzled her nose while looking at her and she saw the meaning in it. His grip was not as gentle but in some way Zu liked it as it only emphasized what she saw in his eyes: Safety. It relaxed her and found herself unstiffening as she looked into his green eyes where she saw one more thing: Trust. He trusted her. She had to tell him…it was just so hard to at this point.

"I…I'm…" Zu started, her arms wrapping around his neck slowly as she tried so hard to resist but couldn't.

She knew she should pull away from him. Pull away and tell him and _then_ see if he still wanted to do this. The princess knew he wanted to at that particular moment. He wasn't being forced to by instinct. Even if he had given into his instincts earlier they were still what were making him do it. Now though, now Gaara knew exactly what he was doing and wanted to do it. Zukiyo wasn't going to deny that she wanted it too, but she had to tell him first. She knew she had to, yet forming coherent thoughts at that moment was impossible. Zu's mind kept going back to how close he was, how his scent filled her every breath, how his breath felt against her lips, and how close his lips were to hers in that moment.

The princess tried, one last time, to stop and tell him but couldn't as she leaned ever so slightly closer. The second she felt his lips on hers as he kissed her she gave in. She couldn't resist at that point anymore and returned the kiss softly. Her mind switched in that instant to how…soft this felt. Zu couldn't remember if she had ever been kissed this way. Soft, slow, tender, and…something else she couldn't place. It was there in the next kiss he pressed to her lips as well, and the next. It amazed her. Gaara was not someone she expected to be capable of this. She herself normally liked it harder and rougher but something was different. She liked, no _loved_, this and knew somewhere inside her that had he been anyone else she wouldn't have. Then she remembered: Gaara didn't know what she was. That didn't stop her returning his kisses though, not for an instant, they felt too good. She knew she had to though, even as she felt that surge of excitement and bliss as he deepened the next kiss ever so slightly, sliding his tongue against her bottom lip, even as she parted her lips for it so it could enter and pulled herself closer, she knew she had to stop. She had to tell him…

"_Mmm…but gods this feels so nice…_" she thought and felt him deepen the kiss even more, his tongue coaxing hers into movement, making her melt into it even as she resisted, "_You need to pull away, Zu. You need to do it _now_…a little longer won't hurt…yes it will…no it won't…it's just a kiss. Like hell it's just a kiss, this is more than that and you know it. This is the man you want to spend the rest of _eternity_ with. You _need_ to tell him._"

The silver eyed princess knew she had to tell him and she tried but couldn't pull away. Something felt too different in his kisses…and as wrong as she knew this was it felt too right to stop. Zukiyo loved every single moment of every last kiss and melted into every last one as she purred softly in a sort of dazed bliss. Still that voice in the back of her mind fought with her and she lost track of time as she fought back with it…until Gaara reached her neck at least. Hot and yet soft she felt his lips against the skin of her neck and pushed him back.

"No." she said snapping out of the daze, forcing herself to not growl at him, and he looked at her for a moment and pulled her lips to his again.

"Whatever you want, Princess." He promised as he nuzzled her nose, and for the first time in decades she heard affection in her title from a male's voice.

_July 19th, 1928_

"_Papa!" she screamed as she watched the morning light slowly brighten the dark night sky and saw him running towards her as fast as he could, "Papa!"_

_She was chained to the rock side like a prisoner for execution as the morning light came, slowly overwhelming her. For any other vampire this would be nothing, there would still be time to get inside, but to her and anyone else with the Ryouma bloodline trait this was the beginning of death. It was painful too…a slow painful death awaited her…all because of her uncle and his hate. _

_Somehow he had managed to get inside her room without her waking and had her chained by the time she did._

"_Time to teach my sister a lesson on what the second born is really worth. Do you hear me, Zuzu?" he had growled and wrenched her head back by grabbing her hair, "You are worthless…nothing…just like your mother. I was first…I was the first born. Not. Her."_

"_Uncle Oniji…please…you need to feed." She had pleaded, recognizing the crazed look in his eyes as that of Hunger. _

"_I have fed." He growled and kicked her in the stomach before he dragged her through the field behind the manor, through the trees, and to the execution grounds where she was chained…like someone guilty of high treason._

_Then he left her there to die…bound and gagged._

_She tried everything she could to escape her bindings until her wrists ran slick with her blood. Zukiyo managed to slip the gag as she heard her family calling out to her and screamed._

"_ZUKIYO!" she heard her father yell, panic stricken and filled with dread._

"_PAPA!" _

_He ran to her, ignoring the pain the burning dawn presented him and reached her. Immediately he picked the locks and picked her up. Dawn. Dawn was coming and there was nowhere to run to. He looked around for anything at all to provide shelter and saw it. A cave. It wasn't big enough for the both of them but it was big enough for her. It was big enough for his princess…his little angel. It would save her…and he ran. He ran to it and pushed her in as the sun rose. Growling from the pain he pushed his daughter's hands away. _

"_Papa, no! Papa! There's room!" she said, knowing that there wasn't, but pleading desperately to her father, "Papa, please! Papa, there's room!"_

"_No there isn't. Stay here, Zuzu. I love you. You remember that, princess. I. Love. You…and I will always love you and be with you. Remember that and don't you _ever _forget who or what you are. I love you, your sister, and your mother. Stay here…my little angel…my princess." He stated breathing heavily from the pain and kissed her forehead one last time before he left._

"PAPA! **PAPA!**_"she screamed through her sobs and reached until it was too painful for her as she heard his dying breaths nearby._

_He didn't want her to watch him die for her but she still heard it…and she screamed...all through the daylight hours she screamed and wailed until they found her the next night. Weakened, severely scalded, and wild they found her sobbing as she screamed for her father still. Her weak and raw voice begging and pleading with him to come back even though she knew he could not.. It was Neji that took her away from the body and Hinata who helped...and it was Yukiko who stared back coldly as Zukiyo relived her father's last words again and again…and again._

"Zu?" Gaara's voice asked her bringing her from her memories and she smiled weakly at him, forcing back tears only to have him wipe them away, "What is it?"

"I…" she sighed and pulled back from him a bit but he stopped her.

"What is it?" he asked again, and she saw in his eyes that he was worried he might have done something wrong.

"It's not you…nothing bad at least." She stated and he relaxed and smiled a bit, "I just…need to…tell you something."

"What is it?" he asked and nuzzled her nose, "Tell me."

"I'm-" she started but there was a knock on the door, it was Kankuro again.

"Turn on the news." He stated through the door, his voice sounding panicked, and Zu knew very well this was bad.

Footsteps echoed through the still air in the dimly lit park as a man, tall, dark haired, and blue eyed walked down the concrete pathway into the area. A fight had just occurred here, the air was filled with the scent of blood, but whoever cleaned up after it was very good at hiding their actions. No physical trace was left of the event. Still he didn't need to see it to know she had been there. She had been hurt, bleeding, and her scent stood out above all the rest to him. Once again he had found her.

"So this is where she's hiding…" he stated and smiled, a slight malicious twist to it, as his blue eyes filled with a wicked intent, "My princess…"

**A/N: Yes...I know...I am EVIL...and you love it. Next chapter will be soon I promise...*walks away laughing diabolically* **


	16. Chapter 16: Truth Pt 1

**A/N: Oh…my…God. It's been so long since I updated. There's a few reasons for that: College, huge back log on paintings I need to finish (still do too), personal stuff, and the fact that this chapter and the next ones took A LONG LONG LONG time to get just right. I literally went through about 8 different possible scenarios for how this would all work out and totally re-wrote this whole segment of chapters about 3 times. Anyway enough rambling from me. I don't own the Naruto characters or characters created by my good friend TheFireRose77 just the ones I created blah blah blah...Read on!**

Chapter 16: Truth Pt. 1

"_The fire blazed on through the night ripping through some dozens of homes in the capital before firefighters were able to get the flames under control. The fire marshal has not reported any injuries but has stated that these fires were most likely the result of arson_," The news anchor stated on the television as a still frame shot of the flames hung in a small box to the left of her head before the screen flashed to a news conference from earlier that day.

"_Each house was seemingly set aflame separately, one right after the other. An accelerant was used to start the fire in the front entry hall of each home. We are as of yet unaware of the reason behind these atrocious acts but they were deliberate and we and the local police are doing everything we can to track down the culprits…_" the fire marshal's voice cut out as the screen went back to the news anchor.

"_Police state neighbors in the area remember seeing a group of darkly clothed individuals in the area not long before the fires began. Another thing found at the scene was a silver cross nailed into the front door of the first home with an inscription on it reading: And light must shine in darkness for no good may come from evil._"

They all sat around the television watching the story and others like it play out. Zu watched the screen almost fixatedly. These fires were the work of vampire hunters. The inscription and the cross proved it. Hunters didn't care who they hurt in the process of destroying every immortal creature in the world right down to the infants. Usually they were never this brazen about it. The Immortal Government ruled by the clan's queen always kept it in check; always tried to stop it before it began…but the clan was falling apart and the government was too.

"Something needs to change." Naruto stated, the quiet and solemn tone in which he said it in so very out of the ordinary for him.

He was right, though, and everyone agreed. Something needed to change before the whole world fell apart. However, there was only so much that could be done. The only thing that would fix everything was a change in the leadership of the clan, a new queen, and the only one that could truly claim that title was Zukiyo.

She didn't want that title. She didn't want it, she hated her current title, and yet she was feeling slightly responsible for this whole mess. Yukiko was tearing the world apart with all of this.

The entire world…as what she was doing to the Immortal realm was starting to overflow into the realm the mortals lived in. Yes it was true that they all lived side by side, usually without the mortal population even knowing it, but the only reason they "got along" at all was because the majority of the mortal world didn't know the others existed. Not to say it had always been like that. The mortal realm once knew about the immortal races. However, as the years went on, the human world seemed content to forget about the immortal one. As such it became safer just to keep the two worlds separated. The clan as head of the immortal government was supposed to help keep it separated. Yukiko in her insanity was failing to do that.

Things needed to change and change soon. Still Zukiyo knew that the only real source of change would be if she did what she really did not want to do. There was so much that stood in the way. Other than Yukiko herself there was the clan law. Zu, even if she was the Heir Apparent and the Crown Princess, could not kill Yukiko without being put on trial for the murder of the queen. Of course there was most likely a loophole around that in times of great need. However, there was the one stating that without marriage to a mate… Zu would have to marry her sister's king. The closest resolution she had to that was in the form of an antisocial, homicidal, red-headed male pureblood that seemed to care about her and have some sort of affection and…desire for her while still not knowing that she was in fact a real princess.

In her mind she was more of a gypsy than a princess, but she knew that in reality it didn't change anything. Kamitsuyo Zukiyo was more than just a free-spirited gypsy with slightly psychotic taste for homicide and blood. The name itself was more than that. Zukiyo was named after one of the clan's previous queens, the queen that survived two wars that engulfed the entire vampiric world as well as parts of rest of the world; mortal as well as immortal and earned herself the epithet of The Battle Queen or to her enemies The Bloody Queen. She did whatever she had to in order to keep the world and clan together. Like her predecessors before her, she fought tooth and nail to build the clan more and keep it strong. The princess knew that as far as you could go back tracing the clan's family line every clan head fought, and if need be died, to build and protect the clan in order to keep the peace and if keeping the peace required fighting a war so be it. Not one of them ever sat back from that. Ever. The Kamitsuyo clan came into power because of that drive. They waged the longest war the world had ever seen against two older clans in order to obtain their place as the center point of the immortal world's government. Without a government and without a stable figurehead for that government, the world would fall into chaos and anarchy…and it was chaos and anarchy before the clan.

Zukiyo knew that she was descended from a line of queens and clan heads that went back to the start of the vampiric race and beyond even that. She knew what and who she was and, as much as she hated the title that came with it, she was proud of it. She was proud of the history…on both sides of her family. Her father's family was no different. They were gypsies but Zukiyo knew there was something more to them. Their history was always shrouded in a sort of mysterious haze but always centered on the idea that you protect your family at whatever cost.

Yukiko was Zu's sister but the princess was starting to realize that what her sister was doing was endangering the rest of her family. Not just the Ryouma side of her family but also the one she realized she had here in Naruto's Estate. Neji and Hinata had always been family but in the time Zu had been here she somehow had made the rest of the inhabitants of this palatial house family too…except for Gaara.

Gaara was and always had been different. Now she understood why. It was so hard to believe that only about half an hour ago he had been kissing her in a way she had never felt before. She had never in her life felt as she did when she was with him. It was as if somehow he held a part of her inside himself, as she did not feel whole unless she was with him.

The princess sighed mentally as she watched the news, reality flooding back to her once more as Gaara spoke.

"What needs to change is the government...we need a new queen." He stated and everyone nodded while refusing to glance at the gypsy vampiress that sat by his side.

They continued to watch the news for a while longer until one by one they started to filter out of the room until Zu and Gaara were the only ones left sitting there. Gaara watched the dark haired vampiress stare at the television screen. Once more he found himself coming to the conclusion that, while he had no real idea of what it was he felt for her, he cared for her deeply. More than he had ever cared for anyone, that he wanted her as his mate...his partner for the rest of eternity, and that he desired her. It was a strange thing to be thinking about when the world's chaos was displayed on the TV, but he found it difficult to think about anything else at this moment.

She turned her head and looked at him after feeling his gaze on her. The princess knew that she needed to tell him and opened her mouth to do so.

"Gaara, I-" Zu began but was interrupted by him pulling her onto his lap.

"Yes, princess?" he asked as his arms wrapped around her while he nuzzled her cheek.

This caught her so off guard Zukiyo forgot what she was going to say. This was…new from him. Yes, there was what happened when they had kissed, but that was only a little while ago. Before today he had never been so…open with admitting he liked her close. It was nice and she enjoyed it knowing that Gaara meant it when he did things like this. Zu couldn't help but purr as he nuzzled her cheek and she smiled despite everything that was going on. Still it was when he dared to nuzzle a bit lower that she snapped back to attention.

"Gaara…not my neck." She warned with a slight growl and he backed off, something else that surprised her.

"Whatever you want, princess", he stated and looked at her, "You wanted to tell me something?"

The exiled heir apparent looked down into his jade eyes and fought the urge to simply…melt into his arms. She knew that telling him would change things. Yet she needed to tell him and pray he understood why she hadn't before.

"Yes. I did. It's important and…you need to know, so…" she started and looked around then got up and pulled him along through the house to some place she knew they would not be randomly interrupted.

She knew that Gaara was probably confused by what she was doing but she needed to make sure they weren't interrupted anymore. She trusted him and she wanted to be with him. That was why she couldn't put this off any longer. So drawing him into the garden, far away from everyone else, Zu put her life in his hands. The princess knew his temper, knew his blood lust, knew he had been intent on killing her at first, and knew how dangerous he was and could still be, but she knew now, or at least thought she did, that he would never physically harm her.

"Gaara…I…" she began, working up the actual courage to say what she had to, "I trust you. I trust you with…everything. Even when I push you away, I still trust you, it's just I have insecurities. The point is that…you need to know…"

"Know what?" the red head asked warily.

"Thank the Gods that is done." Chi stated after she had finally finished setting up her new home.

Chi had arrived in the city a few days ago but figured that it would be better to get her new home set up and ready to impress before she contacted the owners of this territory. She didn't really expect much trouble from them. Then again, Chi had a very high opinion of herself and, as Misora once put it, enough pure ego to get her through anything. Chi's response was that the ego ran in the family, as Misora well knew, and that she deserved to have the ego because she was just that awesome.

Over 2000 years old at this point in time, the palace-born vampiress had seen a lot and suffered a lot. Including one failed engagement, the loss of two of her best friends, the loss of her parents, all of her eight siblings save her one younger brother, and the loss of her grandfather. The vampiress did not let it get her down though. She knew that they would have wanted her happy and she did what made her happy. Others might not agree with it but she didn't give a flying fuck if they did or not. If she wanted to party she'd party. If other elders didn't think she was lady-like enough then fuck them. She didn't care what they thought. She cared about her family. They were all that mattered. The rest of the world could go screw themselves for all she cared.

If the tea-colored vampiress was lucky she might even be able to find one of those family members here in this city. It was on the other side of the world from the Kamitsuyo Manor and capital. That and Chi had a feeling that she would find Zu. Find her little sister-in-spirit. Their family was strange and not really related by blood but Chi adored Zukiyo as a little sister and missed her terribly.

Zu simply looked up at the imposing red headed vampire across from her and took a deep breath before speaking, "Neji…Neji was not entirely truthful with you…that night."

Gaara's eyes narrowed. He knew exactly what night she was referring to….

"_Does she have a title?" _

"_No…she has no titles."_

"In what way did he lie?" He growled out, watching her look up at him with her silver grey eyes searching his jade ones for something, what he did not know, but he did know he could see a caring in her eyes…for him and forced himself to calm a bit and ask again a bit more nicely, "In what way did he lie, Zu?"

"I…I…" She started to say again but felt a nervousness start to creep up her being again, at what would happen once she said the words.

She detested feeling so unsure about everything and frightened. It wasn't normal for her and she did not like it but she had to tell him. The princess only feared how he would react. She knew he wouldn't physically harm her, or at least she believed ardently that he wouldn't, but she feared the emotional pain of him possibly rejecting her based off of the fact she had a title.

"He's not going to hurt her," Naruto said for the umpteenth time since Neji had noticed that Zu and Gaara were nowhere to be found, "He might be mad…but it's going to mostly be at _you_ for lying to him in the first place".

"I was not about to tell _him_ that the new pureblood vampiress in _his_ territory was _the_ princess. I was trying to _protect_ her _from_ him." Neji stated very pointedly and Hinata only sighed.

"Nii-san…you cannot protect Zu from him if she doesn't _want_ to be protected from him. If Zu doesn't want to do something, she's not going to do it or let it happen. You've known her just as long as I have and should know that." She stated quietly and Kankuro nodded after taking a sip from his glass of blood before speaking.

"I haven't quite known her for a year yet and I already know that about her. Gaara is essentially the same way…and he does not like to be lied to. So when she tells him, if I were you, which thankfully I am not, I would avoid Gaara's general area for a while, because his wrath is most likely gonna be directed at _you_ the one that lied to him in the first place."

"I still don't have to like this. There's no knowing what he's going to do!"

"He's not going to hurt her!" Naruto stated…..again.

"You….?" Gaara started to try to get her to stop saying I over and over again before sighing and pulling her close to kiss her forehead, "Just talk".

He just couldn't help himself around her. He sensed he was _not_ going to be pleased with whatever this information was but at the same time he most certainly did not like seeing her so nervous and unsure. It just wasn't her. It wasn't normal and to some strange degree, it bothered him to see her so out of sorts. Zu had always seemed so confident in whatever she did. That was one of the things he found most attractive about her.

Zukiyo relaxed as he looked down at her and took a deep breath before speaking, "I avoided you this past month because I was afraid. I was afraid of…everything really. I don't normally have feelings for someone like I do for you. The last time I did it ended badly…very, very badly. I know perfectly well that you won't do what he did. You didn't know what he did when you…we…well you since you started…"

Gaara knew what she was referring to, he had made it clear to her he wanted her to some extent and he was the one that started it. Still, how could he help himself? He might be an antisocial, homicidal psychopath but he was still a man and Zu was very much still a female, a very delectable smelling, attractive looking, desirable, and extremely intelligent pureblood vampiric female. She was, to him just...

"Perfect…just perfect," Zu's long exiled grandfather Hiryu stated to his wife once they heard the news from Aziza, "She's sent Taizo out looking for Zu."

"He's not going to do anything to her," His wife, Sumire stated while still on the phone with her adopted sister.

"Oh just put me on speaker, this is ridiculous," the woman on the other end of the phone stated and Sumire complied, "That old grump is not going to do anything to hurt his great-granddaughter you twit".

"Yes…call the person that managed to lock you in your own storage closet and kidnapped your sister from the middle of your palace with all the guards in it a twit…"

"Please…don't start you two", Sumire sighed, she was weary of her husband and sister fighting every time they spoke to each other.

"We have bigger problems," Misora stated as she sat there listening as well to this, "Taizo is the least of them. Knowing him he probably only agreed because he wanted Yukiko to stop pestering him about if he knows where she is."

"Exactly. He's sick of it. She calls him every day, asks the same thing every day, and he always tells her he doesn't know but she still asks. Look at it as another pair of eyes out trying to find her to help her."

Hiryu ran his fingers through his silver hair exasperatedly, "He's a former king. His loyalty is to the clan. Yukiko rules the clan. Helping Zukiyo would be helping rebellion…and rebellion and Taizo are two things that do not mix. He's got loyalty practically engraved on his bones."

"She is named after his daughter," Sumire countered, "The whole world knows how much he adored and loved his daughter…and many have said that Zu resembles her. I doubt he's going to do any harm to her."

"Let's just hope for our sakes she's found some people willing to protect her against him if he decides loyalty is worth more than sentimentality."

"I'm just hoping she's safe and happy…and maybe found a mate," Sumire stated seriously which caused Hiryu to scowl at remembering the last man Zu had ever been serious about and what happened because of it.

"Right…like that will happen."

Zu melted into the kiss that Gaara pressed into her lips as tenderly as he could manage and she returned it unable to stop herself from doing so. She knew that he most likely did it just to stop her from stuttering and rambling again but she enjoyed it regardless.

"Since we first kissed…before that even, I just didn't want to see it at the time…that you were growing to care about me. You never had to say it…you still don't. I can just see it when I look at you. I pushed you away because I was just afraid of what would happen once you found out. I didn't want to be attached to you only to lose you. I didn't think you'd still want me…"

The red-headed vampire brushed her hair out of her eyes after and looked at her seriously, "Just tell me, princess."

This only caused her to pull away and frown while turning around and wrapping her arms around herself. He was about to pull her back when she spoke.

"I have a title, Gaara."

Those words stopped him in his tracks and he frowned, a rather irritated anger starting to boil up inside him and fight with the rest of what he felt for her, "What. Is. It?"

Zu flinched a bit with every word and held herself a bit tighter then took a deep breath before speaking. It was best to just get this all out of the way now.

"I'm…"

**A/N:** **Yes cliffhanger, but only because I have the next one mostly written out just fine. Just needs editing. **


	17. Chapter 17: Truth Pt 2

**A/N****: The next chapter that isn't a year later. YAY! The continuation from the cliffhanger last chapter. YAY! Read on I won't keep you.**

Chapter 17: Truth Pt. 2

"He's mad…not really mad but he's not happy," Naruto stated while using his ability as an emotion sensing Kyuubi to read Gaara from where they were while Kankuro kept Neji from going out the door, "I said he was mad not homicidal".

"She's probably trying to explain herself as she attempts to tell him," Hinata offered, trying to remain calm for everyone, "Gaara has a temper but he does care deeply for her…"

Temari nodded from where she sat, "The more she explains why to him the more likely he'll understand and not blow up. He just went through a period of not having her around and suffered from that remember? I don't…think…he'll do anything that will result in a repeat of that…I think. At the very least he won't blow up."

"At her," The elder Sabaku brother corrected, "He'll blow up at everyone else that _knew_ and didn't tell him."

Naruto just waved it off, "He'll get over it."

Gaara ran his fingers through his hair forcing himself to calm down, look at the facts, and think about this before losing his temper. It seemed she was waiting for him to calm a little before continuing on this revelation. Of course what she said next just sent his anger level right back up again.

"I'm…I'm a princess. _The_ princess."

He just hissed as his temper flared and she looked at him before continuing on; knowing it was now or never to get this all out. If she didn't he'd walk away and wouldn't listen to whatever else she had to say.

He was already starting to walk away before he hurt her. That was the first instinct he had on how to handle this. Walk away now before he lashed out and physically harmed her. Despite it all, Gaara didn't want to hurt her. That amazed him to some extent. He had wanted to kill her at the beginning of all this after he found out the truth. Well he had found it out and yet he didn't want to kill her. Yes, it had momentarily flashed in his mind, he was a homicidal psychopath after all, yet his mind instantly put that option as way out of the question and not even a close option for how to react or what to do. As of this moment he wasn't homicidal, he was just angry he had been lied to.

"I'm the Heir Apparent. Yukiko is my older twin sister. She supposedly stripped me of my title befo-"

"Any _idiot_ knows _that_ title cannot be stripped!" Gaara hissed back at her as he turned around to face her, his fangs extended fully from his barely controlled rage, and walked towards her as she leaned back against a tree as if this conversation was taking all the energy right out of her, "So therefore you're still next in line."

He might not have wanted to harm her, but he was still angry enough to stand there and tell her how wrong she was. She had a title. He was told she didn't. Therefore someone lied and since she was the one _with _the title he felt fit to reason she was the one responsible for him being in the dark about it all this time while he put his well-maintained and hidden emotions on the line.

"I know that!" She hissed back at him, her own fangs fully displayed, which simultaneously angered him a bit more as well as thrill him slightly to see her usual fiery-self back, "I know you're angry, but I can't help the fact I was born a princess. I didn't _choose _it. I don't_ want_ it, but I _can't_ stop being it. I've _tried_, Gaara! I've tried and tried and _tried_! I've tried so _hard_ to get away from it. From that label just…just…just _plastered_ across my _very being _by the council that used to deny I was even _alive_ before my mother was murdered by her _own brother_! Who before_ that_ tried to kill _me_ and instead murdered my father! Why?! Only because I'm the second born princess like my mother was! I never asked to be a princess! I don't want to be a princess or a queen or anything of the sort! I just wanted to live my life as I chose to live it!"

"You still could have told me!" He hissed back at her, still, rather irrationally, convinced that his lack of knowledge was her doing, "You. Lied."

"Oh he's pissed…he's really, really pissed right now." Naruto stated while they all sat down in his study waiting for the outcome of this, using the Kyuubi demon as a sort of transistor radio to broadcast what was going on, "But she's just as mad now. He probably said something he shouldn't have."

"He probably accused her of lying," Hinata stated and Neji nodded, "Zu does lie…to her enemies. To everyone else…no. She won't lie; she'll simply skirt around an answer or answer it vaguely. She may boarder on lying but she won't outright lie unless it's to protect someone."

"You _**NEVER**_asked _**ME**_!" Zu rounded while facing him, refusing to back down at this moment, "You assumed what Neji said was true instead of asking the person you were asking about! I probably wouldn't have _told_ you…but I wouldn't have _lied_. I'd just have skirted around the answer like I always did whenever you'd start asking implicating questions. Did it ever occur to you that I never named my parents? My sister? My family? Does it occur to you _now_ that I answered vaguely about things that would have otherwise indicated anything incriminating enough for _you_ to _kill_ me, which you were planning on doing when I first got here! Yes, I noticed that's what you were doing at first!"

Gaara twitched in his anger but her words forced him to think for a moment, think back since he met her…and she was right. Zu had never really revealed anything damning, anything that would give out who she was even when she was telling him about things from her life. He had known so much about her yet so little.

That had all changed now. The knowledge of her title meant a more filled out version of her history now that he could place names to the people she had indicated in her stories about her life. It filled in so many gaps and explained so much about her. It explained why she did certain things or acted a certain way. It even explained this situation a bit more for him. It even went as far to help explain how she always seemed to know what it was he was thinking at any given time.

"I know who your family is now." He stated a bit calmer than he was before; he was still furious but not as much so, "That still doesn't change it though."

"You think I don't know that? Wishing my title away does not make it go away…no matter how hard I wish for it to. I already told you that I have _tried_. I tried to forget about it. Pretend I didn't have it. Pretend I was normal and not born into 'privilege' so I could go on living a happy little twisted existence at your side," Zukiyo admitted to him smoothly and honestly which made him blink in surprise and look at her.

Gaara was not expecting her to admit anything of that sort so…easily. He knew to some extent that she felt the same way he did, even if he wasn't sure what it was he felt for her. Right now there was still anger, slowly diminishing anger as he slowly understood what it felt like to be her and in her position, but he knew that he still felt much more than just that for her.

Their lives were very different yet at the same time not. She was a princess that was loved by both parents, he was a vampiric noble that never knew his mother and was hated by his father yet there was a similarity in parts of their lives. They were both hated by people they wanted love and acceptance from. They were both shunned simply for being themselves. They had both felt agony at the hands of a family member. In her case, he admitted, she may have felt a bit more than he did from what he knew of her history.

"I despise my title. It has brought me nothing but pain, loss, trouble, and grief. I don't want it. Not one part of it, but with things as they are now…I…I don't feel that I have a choice."

Gaara knew what she was referring to. She meant the state of the world and the Immortal government. He himself had stated they needed a new queen. Of course at the time he had no idea that Zu was the only option for a new queen. Still he didn't know what he'd have said even if he had known. He still had plenty of anger towards the rest of them that knew but he was finding that he just couldn't stay mad at _her_.

He just couldn't, especially now as she looked rather trapped and alone like some bird in a cage. As furious as he had been with her he still didn't like how she seemed trapped. That wasn't her. Zu to him was a free spirited, wild, untamable force that, even though he still wanted to claim as his own, he knew should never be caged.

He had been so intent on killing her once he found out what it was everyone seemed to be hiding from him about her. However, over the months he had spent around her or without her he had been swayed from that intent by her very being. She was useful to him, yes, even more so now if he really wanted that aspect of her so it made sense to not want to kill her, but more than that he enjoyed seeing someone so seemingly free. Even though she was a fugitive, weaker than him, and watched constantly she still did what she wanted, when she wanted, and how she wanted. It hit him then that not being able to choose how to live her life had to be unbearable for someone so fiercely free spirited.

"And if you did?" Gaara asked, simply out of curiosity as he looked at her while his anger towards her subsided and he stepped closer to her still.

"Given a choice; I'd say to Hell with them all. I would be content with living here with you having a quiet little life." she stated truthfully and sighed while looking up at him ,as he was now directly in front of her, "I can't change my title, it's part of the package that comes with me…but the title does not make me…_me_".

The red head simply looked down at her while thinking still, trying to sort through all the emotions that he seemed to have to deal with now because of her. It made his head spin. There was still just so much to sort through all at once. He could easily forgive her for this he found. In reality he had agreed that there wasn't really that much to forgive. True she didn't tell him about her title but he had never asked her about it. Gaara knew she probably wouldn't have told him, but she was right: she'd have just skirted around the answer without lying. The red head could even understand why.

For someone like her, a title was a burden worth forgetting and living without. She was trying to do that with him. Move on from the pains of a title that she didn't choose and which everyone seemed ready to gut her for. Gaara found that he could understand that and it amazed him.

It amazed him because he had taken the time to think about this instead of just outright killing her. Anyone else and he probably would have without a moment's hesitation or second thought after it. Kankuro had been right earlier. Gaara cared for this female in front of him on a level he never expected to care for someone in his life for the first time in his life. He only recently came to terms with _that._

_Now_ he had to come to terms with the fact that the woman he wanted also came with a title he did not want. Being with her would mean he'd have a title too. Considering the fact that the embodiment of his desires was also the Heir Apparent to the Immortal and Vampiric throne…he could be king. If he stayed and she became queen…which he had no doubt that she would. It was all that could be done to ensure that the world wouldn't go to Hell in a hand basket with him and his family in it. He knew that and he knew that she knew it was the only path for her to go. He also knew that despite her ruthlessness, her homicidal tendencies, her coldness to her enemies, and her own psychopathic nature that Zu was incredibly loyal to her family and her friends and that, much like Naruto, she would do anything it took to keep them safe. The fact he had knowledge of her clan and the royal house only reinforced his knowledge of what Zu would do concerning her sister and title.

All of this going on in his mind was soothed instantly as he felt the familiar sensation of her fingers running through his hair as she spoke softly and sincerely.

"Yes…I could be queen…and that would make you king if you choose to stay, but no matter what, even if you don't choose to stay with me, I am _your_ princess and yours alone. I refuse utterly to be anyone else's if I have to be one at all. If you go…I will be…be…sad," she stated and he knew very well she'd be more than that by the look in her eyes as they clouded over a bit and fought back tears, "…but I will _understand_. I really would and you…you know I would. It's a lot to ask of you and it's a lot to ask you to go through. That still doesn't change that I refuse to submit to anyone but you."

She had pulled away a bit as she was saying this, leaving a cold void where she had been standing before him. It reminded him too much of what life had been like when she was ignoring him completely before. Gaara couldn't stand the thought of going through that sickening rollercoaster again, but this time be permanently going down. As such he did the only thing that he really could at that point and pulled her back to him and wrapped his arms around her, holding her against him tightly but gently.

He didn't have to say it, she knew by the look in his eyes even as he habitually tried to hide it. Gaara very simply cared too much about her just to let her go and walk away from her or let her walk away from him again. He didn't want the title, he didn't want the responsibility that came with that particular title, but he wanted _her_ more. The past month without her was still fresh in his mind and he did not like the pain it caused to think of going through that again for even longer.

Despite her having a title, despite the impending battles he _knew_ would come, despite the danger he knew everyone was in because of her, despite everything really…his instincts never changed as they told him that she was his. His Princess. _His_…and he would slaughter anyone and _everyone_ that even thought about taking what was his away from him.


End file.
